We Are Here: 30 Inspiring Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Who Have Shaped the United States

by Naomi Hirahara, Illianette Ferandez (Illustrator), Smithsonian Institution

Overview

A stunning anthology licensed in partnership with the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, We Are Here celebrates 30 of the most inspiring Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in U.S. history. 

There are more than 23 million people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent living in the United States. Their stories span across generations, as well as across the world. We Are Here highlights thirty Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and the impact they’ve had on the cultural, social, and political fabric of the United States.

Profiles include: Amanda Nguyen * Bruno Mars * Grace Lee Boggs * Lakshmi Singh * Naomi Osaka * Philip Vera Cruz * Vishavjit Singh * Shirin Neshat * Thenmozhi Soundararajan * Schuyler Miwon Hong Bailar * Channapha Khamvongsa * Lydia XZ Brown * Etel Adnan * Chien-Shiung Wu * Jerry Yang * Carissa Moore * Craig Santos Perez * Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson * Eddie Aikau * John Kneubuhl * Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner * Keanu Reeves * Hinaleimoana Kwai Kong Wong-Kalu * Manny Crisostomo * Momi Cazimero * Teresa Teaiwa * Mau Piailug * Taimane Gardner * Calvin and Charlene Hoe * Dinah Jane

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780762479665
Publisher:	Running Press Book Publishers
Publication date:	10/18/2022
Sold by:	Hachette Digital, Inc.
Format:	eBook
Sales rank:	772,875
File size:	44 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Founded in 1997, the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center began as a mission-critical initiative to further the inclusion of Asian Pacific Americans across the Smithsonian’s collections, research, exhibitions, and programs. Since then the Center has produced temporary and traveling exhibitions, educational resources for K-12 teachers and students, global digital initiatives, and large-scale public programs such as its Culture Labs, a new programmatic model of how museums can bring artists and cultural practitioners together with community members and visitors. The Center is currently a “Museum without Walls,” referring both to its focus of moving beyond physical museum walls to provide programs and resources online and in communities outside of D.C., as well as to its desire to break down boundaries and impediments that traditionally keep communities of color from visiting museums.

Naomi Hirahara is the award-winning author of history books, mysteries, and YA fiction. A former editor of The Rafu Shimpo newspaper and curator of historical exhibitions, she received her B.A. in international relations from Stanford University. Her nonfiction book Terminal Island: Lost Communities of Los Angeles Harbor won the Bruckman Award for Excellence from the Los Angeles Public Library. Her MG book, 1001 Cranes, was awarded honorable mention in youth literature from the Asian/Pacific American Libraries Association. Her Edgar Award-winning Mas Arai mystery series has been translated into Japanese, French and Korean. 

Illi Ferandez is a Chicago based Illustrator. She attended the Chicago Academy of Art where she was formally trained in anatomy and classical figure drawing. Her work revolves around the use of bright colors to highlight the vibrant culture of her homeland, the Philippines. Her work has been featured in the New York Times, Women's Wear Daily, and High Snobiety.

Table of Contents

Foreword Theodore S. Gonzalves iv

Introduction Lisa S. Sasaki vi

Etel Adnan 1

Eddie Aikau 3

Grace Lee Boggs 7

Lydia X. Z. Brown 11

Momi Cazimero 15

Manny Crisostomo 19

Taimane Gardner 23

Calvin and Chariene Hoe 26

Schuyler Miwon Hong Bailor 31

Dinah Jane 33

Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner 37

Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson 41

Channapha Khamvongsa 45

John Kneubuhl 49

Bruno Mars 53

Carissa Moore 57

Shirin Neshat 61

Amanda Nguyen 63

Naomi Osaka 67

Craig Santos Peres 71

Mau Piailug 75

Keanu Reeves 79

Lakshmi Singh 83

Vishavjit Singh 85

Thenmozhi Soundararajan 89

Teresia Teaiwa 92

Philip Vera Cruz 97

Hinateimoana Kwai Kong Wong-Kalu 100

Chien-Shiung Wu 105

Jerry Yang 108

Reflection Guide 111

Acknowledgments 118

Editorial Reviews

"An excellent introduction that makes clear the richness and diversity of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities."—Kirkus Reviews, starred

“Really beautiful collection of biographies that shows a wide range of experiences and identities. Includes reflection guide with questions, links, and a glossary. An essential purchase.”—SLJ Teen Librarian Toolbox

From the Publisher

★ 2022-07-13
“No one is powerless when we come together. No one can make us invisible when we demand to be seen.”

Following an introduction and a foreword, this collective biography opens with a display of portraits of its subjects, a striking array of multi-toned, uplifted faces with proud expressions. Concise, informative entries, written clearly and thoughtfully, cover a diverse group of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, among them Lebanese painter Etel Adnan; surfer Eddie Aikau, who fought for Hawaiian people to be included in the sport they developed; Korean American swimmer Schuyler Miwon Hong Bailar, the first openly transgender college athlete to take part in a Division I sport; Manny Cristomo, a Pulitzer Prize–winning photojournalist from Guam; and Laotian anti-war activist Channapha Khamvongsa. Themes of exclusion, discrimination, racism, xenophobia, and appropriation manifest clearly and thoughtfully in evocative accounts that weave together Asian American and Pacific Islander history and personal experiences. An introduction from Lisa S. Sasaki, director of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center, touches on the hate crimes against Asian Americans since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic and discusses the importance of covering Arab Americans and Pacific Islanders—voices often left out of Asian American histories but laudably included here.

An excellent introduction that makes clear the richness and diversity of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. (reflection guide) (Collective biography. 6-11)

Kirkus Reviews