Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month
May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month!
Why Is AAPI Month Celebrated In May?
Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month (AAPI Heritage Month) is an annual celebration that recognizes the historical and cultural contributions of individuals and groups of Asian and Pacific Islander descent to the United States. The AAPI umbrella term includes cultures from the entire Asian continent—including East, Southeast and South Asia—and the Pacific Islands of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia.
Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have contributed significantly to many facets of American culture and society, including science, medicine, literature, art, sports, politics, activism and law. The month of May was chosen for AAPI Heritage Month because it commemorates the immigration of the first Japanese people to the United States on May 7, 1843. Read more.
2023-24 AREAA State of Asia America Report
The State of Asia America Report from the Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA) shows the following data for the southern region, which includes Kentucky.
Download and read the full report here.
AAPI homeownership barriers include:
- Homeownership gaps by race and ethnicity
- Credit access
- Mortgage-ready population – older millennials are more likely to be mortgage ready
- Home affordability issues
AREAA has established a three-point plan to address these barriers through legislation, advocacy and policy, which includes:
- Downpayment Toward Equity Act. For the second year in a row, AREAA is supporting the Downpayment Toward Equity Act. This legislation would provide down payment assistance to first-time, first-generation homebuyers to address multigenerational inequities in access to homeownership.
- Real Estate Valuation Fairness and Improvement Act. This legislation would create an Interagency Task Force, consisting of representation of the 14 regulatory bodies and government agencies that currently preside, in one form or another, over real estate lending practices and the valuation of real estate collateral for mortgage lending purposes.
- Advancing Equity, Justice and Opportunity for AANHPI | Executive Order 1401. One of the overarching goals of the Executive Order is to examine and assess opportunities for data disaggregation. This point is of utmost importance to the AANHPI community; on a governmental level, there continues to be a limited amount of disaggregated data on specifics subgroups. This makes public and private initiatives and policies to address inequalities and disparities much more difficult to effectively develop and execute.
AAPI Experiences and Resources
AAPI Art & History With Smithsonian
The Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center brings AAPI history, art and culture to you through innovative museum experiences and digital initiatives.
Louisville’s Asia Institute – Crane House is a community resource that promotes understanding of Asian cultures and heritage through education, outreach, and the arts.
Fair Housing Education
WATCH: Long Island Divided
Full series of Long Island Divided as well as the documentary film version, Testing the Divided.
Fairhaven: A Fair Housing Simulation
NARs Bias Override Training
This course helps real estate professionals interrupt stereotypical thinking so they can avoid fair housing pitfalls and provide equal professional service to every customer or client.
At Home With Diversity Certification Class for REALTORS
NAR’s At Home With Diversity course offers information about conducting business in culturally competent ways. It includes updated statistics, fair housing laws, business plan development, business etiquette and more.
Get To Know the Asian Real Estate Association of America (AREAA)
AREAA is dedicated to promoting sustainable homeownership opportunities in Asian American communities by creating a powerful national voice for housing and real estate professionals that serve this dynamic market.
AREAA’s membership represents a vast array of cultural, ethnic, and professional backgrounds. AREAA is open to anyone and everyone who works with or seeks to work with, the AAPI community. AREAA is a powerful national voice not only for its members—housing and real estate professionals—but the communities they serve.
Find out more here.