‘This is Something We Need:’ Rally Held in Harrisburg to Integrate AAPI Studies into Public School Curricula

More than a dozen people gathered at the Capitol in Harrisburg Monday morning in support of the PA House Bill 1917, otherwise known as the AAPI History Inclusion Act. 

The rally was led by the Pennsylvanian chapter of Make Us Visible, which advocates for the integration of AAPI studies and culture in K-12 public school curricula. They are a grassroots coalition of students, parents, educators, and other community members. 

To address the ongoing rise of anti-Asian sentiments and violence, Pennsylvanian community members began connecting with one another. In 2021, Denise Hellenbrand and Serena Nguyễn joined several others in founding the Pennsylvanian chapter of Make Us Visible.

“Make Us Visible PA is how we came together when searching for lasting long-term solutions. We’re a grassroots coalition made of students, parents, teachers and community members advocating for incorporation of Asian American and Pacific Islander history into our K-12 curriculum,” Hellenbrand said. “Make Us Visible PA is looking to help folks to see people like my daughter and my son less of a foreigner and more as a neighbor.”

After the Atlanta Spa Shooting in 2021, where six of eight victims were Asian, state Rep. Patty Kim and other state representatives toured across the commonwealth to speak to Asian American communities.

“We knew people were frustrated and we just listened to the Asian American communities across the commonwealth,” Kim said. “The only thing that kept coming up repeatedly is that we need to educate to combat hate. We need better education.”

She then introduced PA HB 1917 as one solution to anti-Asian sentiment. The bill would require the Department of Education to create an integrated curriculum that includes AAPI history, experiences, and contributions. The bill will also commission studies by the State Board of Education to see how school districts in Pennsylvania are teaching AAPI curriculum and to ensure students are receiving adequate lessons on AAPI history and social contributions.

The bill will not be mandated across the commonwealth. It will be up to the school districts themselves to decide whether they will utilize the resources that will be offered by the Department of Education.

“I hope and encourage every school district to go ahead and teach these important lessons so that our students can understand the terrific contributions of Asian Americans here in America,” said state Rep. Todd Stephens, who co-sponsored the bill.

Hellenbrand contacted Kim and spoke about Make Us Visible PA’s mission. To show her support in the organization, she called for a rally and a press conference.

“I was super excited to [have been contacted] just to know, first of all, that my bill was resonating with folks. It just confirms that's the right thing to do. It's just not me who wants this, but we have people in the community — could be my colleagues and constituents — who are supportive,” Kim said. “It's just very positive to have that group come and collaborate with us because it's only going to make it easier and faster for us to pass this.”

Kim said that she wants AAPI Heritage Month to go beyond the festivities and to have it be an opportunity to amplify more AAPI stories.

“This is something that we need,” Kim said. “This is very timely after the COVID incidents of hate crimes. This felt real. This felt more purposeful than just a celebration. Celebrating is great, but we have a message to share.” 

Beginning at 10 a.m., roughly 15 people gathered on the Capitol steps. Several speakers kicked off the rally by telling their stories and why they support the bill.

“What does it mean to be a part of the AAPI community?” Samia Malik, Commissioner for the PA Governor’s Advisory Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs, asked. “…It means investing in the future through education and community.”

Ellen Min, an educator from Harrisburg, spoke about some of her struggles growing up Asian American and how they mirrored some of the experiences her students currently face.

“For the AAPI students who came to my room between classes during lunch and after school to visit with the only Asian American teacher in the entire school district, I wish I could have made them visible in the history, literature, and foundation of their learning experiences, to let them know not just in the walls of my classroom, but all throughout their high school journey that we see them,” Min said. “They matter and they belong.”

Many Chinese immigrants have lived in the U.S. since the 1850s. Outreach and Support Committee Member Ken Hong from Chester County is a fourth-generation Chinese American. Despite the fact his family members have lived in the U.S. since 1888, he feels that he and his children are still seen as foreigners. He mentioned how American history textbooks fail to thoroughly teach topics like the Chinese Exclusion Act, especially the lasting impacts it had.

“We are not taught about what it was really like to live for generations of families like mine through the exclusion era, an era that is in the living memory of people like my mother,” Hong said. 

At 11 a.m., there was a press conference in the Capitol Rotunda that featured the prime co-sponsors of HB 1917, Kim and Stephens, Executive Director Stephanie Sun from the Governor’s Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs, and state Senator Nikil Saval.

Saval said he would introduce a version of the legislation in the senate alongside state Senator Maria Collette.

“American history without the inclusion of the contributions, the experiences, and the struggles of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders is only a partial truth,” Saval said. “The purpose of HB 1917 is to push against the erasure of Americans by affirming Asian American history as American history and thus Asian American communities as unequivocally American.”

According to Pew Research Center, the country has about “22 million Asian Americans [who] trace their roots to more than 20 countries in East and Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent.” 

“I have this strange distinction of being just one of only a few Asian Americans who serve in our Commonwealth General Assembly and the first and only legislator of South Asian descent. As proud as I am for this distinction, it is also a lonely position.” Saval said. “That loneliness is ameliorated not just by the presence of colleagues with diverse backgrounds, but when colleagues of all backgrounds take actions to ensure that the diversity of our commonwealth is reflected in its institutions, especially its institutions of learning.”

Make Us Visible PA describes themselves as an advocacy group rather than an activist group. Their main goals are to pass legislation, work alongside legislators, and to gather more stories to push their message.

“That's what makes us so strong,” Hellenbrand said. “The more stories we gather, the more opportunities that we share our story is how [the bill is] going to be implemented.”

For more information on Make Us Visible PA, click here.

See also:

North Penn School Board Issues Statement Supporting Asian American, Pacific Islander Communities

Governor Wolf, Community Leaders Call for End to COVID-Related Discrimination