April 29, 2023

As you’re probably aware, the month of May in the United States is celebrated by many in the Asian American community as “Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month.” 

Happy Family Night Market has heard, read, and used the term “AAPI” unthinkingly and uncritically in the past to identify our community. People described us as an “AAPI” organization, so we just went with it without giving much thought to the origin and impact of this term. It seemed to be a widely accepted term that many individuals and organizations within our community used to self-identify, and thus we felt expected to use it ourselves. 

Upon further research and reflection, it’s become clear that this term is harmful to our siblings in the Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities. Lumping the identity and experience of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders together with “Asian Americans” broadly, without their consent, perpetuates Indigenous cultural erasure and misrepresentation. (see: Why It’s Time To Retire The Term ‘Asian Pacific Islander’)

We realize now the hypocrisy of proposing to investigate the origin and etymology of the term “Asia” itself (see: What Is Asia?) yet failing to do the same for the term “AAPI.” Although we have a working definition of “Asian” that is inclusive of Pacific Islanders should they so choose (see: How Does Happy Family Night Market Define “Asian?”), we realize that usage of the term “AAPI” does not, in fact, allow Pacific Islanders to self-identify. It forces them to identify as “Asian.” 

This forced identification is harmful in the same way the U.S. Census’ prescriptive race categories are harmful. For example, the U.S. Census forces people of “Middle Eastern” heritage to identify as “White,” which likewise results in cultural erasure and misrepresentation. (Note: the term “Middle Eastern” is itself harmful and imprecise, rooted in culturally and geographically biased colonial cartography; consider instead “Southwest Asian” and/or “North African,” ie. "SWANA," or simply allowing individuals to self-identify eg. "Lebanese," “Iranian,” or “Kurd.”) 

Another example: we're sure many readers of this newsletter have experienced the uncomfortable uncertainty of not knowing whether or not we are considered "BIPOC."

These are just a few examples of why it’s important to allow individuals to self-identify, and the harm that can be caused in forcing individuals to adhere to prescribed terms.

Happy Family is all about creating a safe, equitable, and inclusive space for the multitude of perspectives and experiences within the Asian diaspora, as well as encouraging dialogue and critical discourse around Asian culture and identity. This is core to our mission, and using the term “AAPI” conflicts with that mission. So we’re retiring this term and we encourage our readers to do the same. We will continue to use the term “Asian diaspora” when referring to our community at-large, and defer to individual self-identification whenever referring to individuals within our community.

And so, on the cusp of what we are reclaiming as Asian Diaspora Heritage Month, we wanted to make this announcement, explain our thought process, and invite you to reflect and respond. What do you think? We’d love to hear from you.

In Solidarity,

Angeline Gragasin
Media Farzin
Tehmina Brohi
David Kim
Gerry Leonard
May Yeung
 

Cooperative Steering Committee
Happy Family Night Market