Elaine Loft, Staff Writer
In a celebration of their heritage, members of the Derryfield Multicultural Student Union gave a presentation about the accomplishments and history of the people of the Asian and Pacific Islands (API). May was chosen because it is the month when Japanese immigrants first arrived in this country, and it is also the month that the transcontinental railway was completed by Chinese immigrants.
Pratham Gurung ‘27 used maps to illustrate his comments,
“Some people consider API as the entire geographic continent of Asia and the Pacific Islands, stretching from Cyprus and Turkey, to Hawaii, while others have a more exclusive definition. The official definition of API is considered to be anyone deriving from central, east, southeast, and south Asia, as well as the indigenous people of the Pacific islands.”
Next Dina Adhikari ‘26 talked about some of the more well-known Asian Americans,
“Dwane Johnson is a Samoan actor, who rose to fame through wrestling as “The Rock” before starring in films like Jumanji. He proudly represents his Samoan heritage and often highlights it in his roles.
Isabella Aiona Abbot is a Native Hawaiian educator and ethnobotanist, who was the first Native Hawaiian woman to earn a Ph.D. in science. Abbott has contributed to the promotion of indigenous knowledge in science.
Kalpana Chawla is an Indian aerospace engineer, who became the first Indian-American woman in space aboard the space shuttle Columbia. She broke barriers in a male-dominated field, and continues to inspire young women in STEM.
David Wong is a Chinese-American neuroscientist, who discovered fluoxetine, the key ingredient in Prozac. His work transformed mental health treatment and led to more targeted therapies for depression.”
AJ Emond ‘27 then introduced several other APIs, and listed their accomplishments,
“Gavino Trono is a Filipino marine biologist, who focused on seaweed diversity. His works have helped advance the understanding of marine phycology.
Ocean Mercier is a Māori activist and physicist, who has received multiple awards for her cultural preservation efforts, as well as her physics teaching.
Ming Antu is a Mongolian mathematician and astronomer who wrote three books, and introduced calculations for cosine, sine, pi to the Qing Empire.”
Emond concluded,
“It is always important to recognize achievement and give credit where it is due. With Asian and Pacific Islanders making up well over half of the world’s population, there is plenty of achievement to be recognized. When we open our doors to learning about people from other cultures, we not only learn about the amazing accomplishments of others, but allow ourselves to become inspired by a wider range of people.”
