Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month

Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month  by Christine Nishigaya, J.D. Candidate, Class of 2022

The month of May is dedicated to Asian American and Pacific Islanders. This celebrates the histories of Americans from across the Asian continent as well as the Pacific islands: Hawaiian islands, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. This year's theme is "Advancing Leaders Through Collaboration" which builds on leadership advancement series.  

I would like to dedicate this blog post to the late senator of Hawaii, Daniel K. Inoye. Senator Inoye was a Japanese American who was born and raised in Hawaii 

During World War II, Inouye served in the U.S. Army’s 442nd Regimental Combat Team. Composed of soldiers of Japanese ancestry, the 442nd became one of the most decorated military units in U.S. history. For his combat heroism, which cost him his right arm, Inouye was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Bronze Star, and the Purple Heart with Cluster. Following the war, he practiced law in Hawaii before entering territorial politics in 1954. When Hawaii became the 50th state, Inouye became one of its first representatives in the U.S. Congress. In 1962 he won election to the U.S. Senate. Senator Inouye gained national distinction in the 1970s as a member of the Senate Watergate Committee and, in 1987, as chairman of the Senate Iran-Contra Committee. He was a longtime member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which he chaired from 2009 to 2012, and served as the Senate’s president pro tempore 2010 until his death in 2012. In 2013 Senator Inouye was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, becoming the first and to date, only senator to receive both the Medal of Freedom and the Medal of Honor. 

Senator Inoye is known for his work as a powerful advocate for Hawaii, the Pacific Islanders, and Asian American people. I hope to build off the moral of late and highest-ranking public official of Asian descent in United States history, U.S. Senator Daniel K. Inouye. As a fellow kamaaina (local of Hawaii) Daniel K. Inouye embodied the aloha spirit, sacrifice, understanding, knowledge, and work ethic that gave way to promoting justice, equality, unity, and opportunity for Pacific Islanders and Asian Americans. The API community brings a deep sense of culture and diversity to the United States.