A Legacy of Leadership and Resilience

May is Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month—a time to honor and celebrate the rich cultures, histories, and contributions of AANHPI communities to the fabric of American life. From culinary delights to influential music and movies, such as Flower Drum Song, on Kanopy. AANHPI individuals have shaped our world in countless ways.

Did you know that instruments like the slide guitar and ukulele, rooted in Hawaiian culture, have influenced genres such as blues music? You can find videos on Or that AANHPI innovators contributed to the development of everyday technology like USBs and made vital advances in medicine, including the development of birth control for women?

You can also explore powerful personal stories like George Takei’s They Called Us Enemy, a graphic memoir that recounts his childhood experience in Japanese American internment camps during World War II.

Explore more about these incredible contributions through Gale OneFile: U.S. History and our library’s curated collection. Stop by to discover, learn, and celebrate!