Celebrating AAPI Heritage Month 
by David M. Tang, Underberg & Kessler LLP

May is a time for change and reflection. My father's birthday falls in May. The trees that were bare a month ago are green or pink and lush and in full bloom. And my hay fever meds are working overtime. 

AAPI month still feels new to me. It wasn’t a thing when I was growing up. When I was younger, I was the one Asian kid in my elementary school – until Fourth Grade. In the 1980s, I was startled to learn about but too young to really understand what had happened to Vincent Chin in Detroit. In May 2009, President Obama signed Proclamation 8369 declaring the month of May to be Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and called on “the people of the United States to learn more about the history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities.”

Recently, former Army intelligence officer and Cabinet Secretary Norman Mineta passed away. His story is pretty remarkable. He and his family were forcibly removed from their home in San Jose when he was ten years old. It was 1942. Pearl Harbor had been attacked two months earlier. Mineta had to give up his dog, because pets weren't allowed in the camps. After the war, and after the last internment camp was closed in 1946, he emerged to break racial barriers and was elected to public office in the 1970s. He served ten terms in Congress. He served twice in the U.S. Cabinet for two presidents – one a Democrat, and then as the only Democratic cabinet secretary for a Republican president. I remember he was a ranking committee member in Congress, when I was a college intern in the Bureau of Legislative Affairs at the State Department.  To me, AAPI month gives us a chance to reflect on Secretary Mineta’s work and the work of others, who have inspired many to fight for the rights of all people. He was known for his empathy, decency and for being a champion of accountability, justice and civil liberties. If you have an interest in learning more about him, look up his documentary, which can be streamed on PBS/WXXI.

I also think of other individuals who are now in elected office. There is an Indian- American and a Chinese-American serving in representative capacities in the State Senate. Our country elected an Asian American Vice President.  It is hard not to feel pride or a deeper sense of belonging when I see individuals – whose family and/or cultural backgrounds are similar in many ways to my own – with a seat at the table.  I appreciate their efforts to plant seeds for a better tomorrow. 

And I’m proud of my involvement with and the work of the diversity committee of the Monroe County Bar Association. I first joined the committee in 2006. Since then, the bar has supported and co-sponsored – with RBBA and GRAWA – the Rochester Legal Diversity Clerkship Program, now the Roy King Diversity Clerkship program, which is in its eighteen year.  I get the chance to work with a clerkship program alum on an almost daily basis, which is a treat. I also developed a close friendship with another former clerk, who was in the program in 2007. A few years ago, we even tried a case together in the commercial division.  

So in this month of reflection, I think about and feel inspired by those in our community who are leading, educating others or advocating for positive change with respect to access to justice, access to health care, higher education and affordable housing.  And I am excited to play a part in my practice, with the bar association and in my volunteer work.  A wise person once said, it is diversity itself that enriches and is fundamental to the American story.  I agree. And to all my friends and colleagues – whether you’re hosting a celebratory AAPI-themed meal or event this month or not – I hope you will take a moment to reflect on where you've been and where you would like to go and, like the Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who have contributed in meaningful, significant ways to all aspects of society, will be inspired to do more good work.