Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Heritage Month 2023: Celebrating Culture and Community

May 8

Written by Ari O’Donovan, Boost Oregon’s Diversity Program Manager and Host of Boosting Our Voices Podcast.

In celebration of AANHPI Heritage Month, we would like to highlight outstanding nonprofit organizations serving these communities in Oregon. The organizations featured below provide various services through different mechanisms and lenses. As we continue to build relationships and partnerships with organizations serving AANHPI communities, we always wish to listen, learn, and grow.

The Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization (IRCO) provides over 200 cultural and linguistic services specific to Oregon’s immigrant and refugee communities among others. IRCO is a community-based organization designed to deliver thoughtful and unique programming led by caring staff who represent the communities IRCO serves. IRCO empowers children, youth, families and elders to become self-sufficient and thrive in their new home. While IRCO serves a variety of communities, their Pacific Islander and Asian Family Center (PIAFC) focuses specifically on Pacific Islanders and Asians. PIAFC was founded in 1994 and was the first culturally and linguistically specific community center committed to the needs of Pacific Islanders and Asians. PIAFC continues to work closely with Polynesian, Micronesian, Melanesian, Southeast Asian, and South Asian communities. PIAFC’s mission is “to provide and promote culturally relevant services to PIAFC families and to contribute rich cultural values and unique experiences that enhance the overall quality of community life.”

If you want to support IRCO, make a donation or volunteer.

When the COVID-19 pandemic started, four Portland high school students founded Project Lotus to raise awareness about mental health and combat stigma in Asian American communities. The founders of Project Lotus understand that mental health is important to overall physical health. Asian American communities have some of the highest levels of mental distress and are three times less likely than white people to seek help. (1) Project Lotus aims to combat the stigma associated with mental health in Asian American communities through tackling the model minority stereotype. Project Lotus educates through webinars, community blogs, and discussions via the podcast, “The Root Problem.”

If you would like to get involved with the Lotus Project, donate or volunteer.

Portland’s The Slants have made a strong name and presence for themselves as one of the first and only all-Asian American dance rock bands in the world. Their sound and live shows are unique and exciting, but The Slants showcase a deeper meaning in their music. The Slants Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by associated band members, aims to engineer change through arts and activism. Amplifying underrepresented voices, particularly those from Asian American communities, is at the forefront of The Slants Foundation’s work while encouraging equity, creativity, and justice.

To support The Slants Foundation, make a donation today.

All of us at Boost Oregon encourage you to learn more about AANHPI Heritage Month and the nonprofit organizations described above. Check out our podcast, Boosting Our Voices, to learn more about Oregon’s BIPOC communities, businesses, and organizations.

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