SU students, faculty honor courage, unity for AANHPI Heritage Month Kickoff

Riya Gada used to do henna at home while growing up. Now a Syracuse University sophomore, she enjoys henna nights with her fellow South Asian Student Association members. 

SASA was one of the multiple registered student organizations tabling in the Schine Atrium on Wednesday afternoon to kick off Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month at SU. While SU celebrates on campus in April, AANHPI Heritage Month is celebrated nationally in May. 

Students and faculty gathered to hear about the month’s theme of courage and unity, the history of AANHPI Heritage Month, eat food from Dosa Grill and watch cultural performances. Put together by SU’s Belonging and Student Success office, the event celebrated the diverse range of ethnicities, cultures, identities and experiences under the umbrella term AANHPI. 

“Coming to a PWI (predominantly white institution), you always have this uncertainty there’s going to be a place for your culture here,” Gada said. “To have a month dedicated to Asian American heritage and Native American, Pacific Islander, to have that space for us to talk about who we are as a culture is really cool and means a lot to us.” 

Photo by Mia Jones

Students in Kappa Phi Lambda table for a discussion they are hosting with Students for International Labor Solidarity this month to talk about labor conditions and workers’ rights in Asia.

Junior Zoe Fang is in the Asian interest sorority Kappa Phi Lambda. Like Gada, Fang said having the space to showcase her culture helps amplify students’ voices and gives them representation. 

AANHPI Heritage Month’s theme was selected in part based on the national theme chosen by the Federal Asian Pacific Council: “power in unity.” Professor Mary Szto at SU’s College of Law said the theme is also inspired by the Year of the Horse, which happens once every 60 years and focuses on power and transformation.

Pallas Hoffmann, a fifth-year architecture student at SU, designed the AANHPI Heritage Month T-shirts. She said she gathered inspiration from butterflies as a symbol of transformation, connection and collective strength. Her design aligns with the “butterfly effect”, where small actions can create change.

“When gathered, butterflies move with a shared direction and purpose, reminding us that courage is not the individual act, but something that is amplified for unity,” Hoffmann said. 

A variety of student performances from various cultures took place throughout the afternoon. Senior Sahana Anand performed a semi-classical dance and sang a popular Bollywood song on behalf of Desi Performance Team, a South Asian dance team and band at SU. Anand acknowledged that there’s a variety of music and dance forms in South Asia, but she wanted to perform pieces that helped people understand what many people in South Asia celebrate.

Photo by Mia Jones

Syracuse University senior Sahana Anand dances on behalf of Desi Performance team.

Emily Porter, co-chair of the planning committee for AANHPI Heritage Month, introduced the student dragon dance performers, who paraded through Schine Atrium with a large paper dragon to celebrate Lunar New Year. Other performances included Michelle Lei, a fourth-year architecture student playing the guzheng, which is an instrument made of wood and has 21 strings. Lei grew up in China and started playing the guzheng when she was in elementary school. 

Later in the event, jazz duo Twona Jams, consisting of brothers Justin and Nathan Liu, played jazz tunes from around the world on the keyboard and drums. Nathan is a sophomore physics major at SU and Justin is starting at SU this fall as a freshman. 

Anand said it meant a lot to her to see how invested people were in each other’s performances, even though they come from different places and might not understand each other’s languages. She is grateful to everyone who stepped up to share their culture. 

“I saw everyone receiving it (the performance), and I felt like I was able to share my culture with them in a way that they were actually able to take home with them, keep in their hearts,” Anand said.

SASA will be celebrating Holi next Saturday on the Women’s Building field. Kappa Phi Lambda is hosting a discussion with Students for International Labor Solidarity to talk about labor conditions and workers’ rights in Asia. The sorority will also be hosting a tie-dye event this month with La L.U.C.H.A. to help students relax. 

Students like Fang are excited to celebrate their backgrounds this AANHPI Heritage Month. 

“Especially in today’s administration, a lot of POCs are getting oppressed in their voices, so I feel like this is a great opportunity for us to talk about our heritage and just celebrate our place here,” Fang said.