Lunar New Year - Massachusetts State Holiday
The Issue
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We are writing to request your help and support in establishing Lunar New Year as a state holiday. Massachusetts must lead and join other states across the country to recognize Lunay New Year as a state holiday to foster inclusion and support of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) throughout Massachusetts. Massachusetts failure to observe Lunar New Year as a state holiday evidences to the AANHPI community our elected officials and lawmakers do not know how to be fully inclusive and equitable. This is one way to recognize and honor AANHPIs collective contributions to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
I. Why Lunar New Year?
Lunar New Year is the most important cultural holiday for many East and Southeast Asian communities in the United States and around the world. Families gather to honor their ancestors and many AANHPI local communities celebrate the new year with ceremonies, dances, fireworks, and traditional food. Lunar New Year is a global event widely celebrated by millions of Asian Americans and enjoyed by many Americans in the United States.
Lunar New Year is a uniquely significant day for millions in the AANHPI community to celebrate and remember their heritage. Just as other communities of color have lost their culture through generations of oppression and forced assimilation, AANHPI communities run the risk of losing their culture without recognition of this critical cultural holiday.
Lunar New Year is a day of fortune, prosperity, luck, and new beginnings. It is a day for celebrating family, community, and AANHPI history–including all that we have overcome, and all the work we have yet to do. The Asian American story–one of struggle, hardships, and enduring hope–is an unequivocally American one. Lunar New Year, the most important cultural holiday of millions of Asian Americans, must be acknowledged.
II. AANHPIs Are a Critical Constituency.
According to The Boston Foundation, Demographic overview of AAPI communities in Massachusetts, acf_presentation_20211215.pdf (tbf.org) (2021),
According to the U.S. Census, Asian Americans and Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders make up 6.2% of the American population (2020 U.S. Census). The 2020 Boston Foundation data further evidences that AANHPIs remain severely underrepresented across government, corporate leadership, and media. This lack of representation in government leaves us with no voice to advance our position with respect to the significance of this important day. AANHPIs are the least likely group to hold elected office (Reflective Democracy Campaign), and the least likely group to attain management roles (Harvard Business Review).
We applaud the efforts of Quincy, Brookline, Hopkinton, and Wayland. These cities and towns have all signed a law establishing a Lunar New Year holiday in their respective public schools. We ask that the state follow.
As the fastest growing racial group, AANHPIs are dramatically rising in civic engagement and voting power. AANHPIs increased their turnout rate by more than any other racial group between the 2016 and 2020 U.S. presidential elections (2020 U.S. Census). AANHPIs are increasingly demanding change from their elected leaders through voting, organizing, and campaign donations.
III. Recognizing an AANHPI Holiday is Crucial to Fostering AANHPI Belonging.
The time for action is now. Misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic led to an unprecedented crisis of racial discrimination and violence against AANHPIs. Hate crimes against AANHPIs during that period of time increased by an alarming percentage across the country. As COVID has loomed since the onset of the pandemic, hate crimes against AANHPIs in 2021 surpassed their record numbers in 2020 (Center for Study of Hate and Extremism). Anti-Asian hate speech increased by 1662% in 2020 compared to 2019. In May 2022, 21% of American adults still believe that Asian Americans are at least partly responsible for COVID-19, almost twice that of the previous year. American born AANHPI individuals continue to be subjected to daily violence and discrimination in the only home they have ever known.
State holidays matter. As a state with a growing AANHPI population, Massachusetts has the opportunity to lead in fostering AANHPI belonging. Establishing a state holiday to recognize the contributions and history of the AANHPI community would be monumental for AANHPIs who call Massachusetts home.
The passage of a Lunar New Year state holiday would be a symbol of hope and progress. By raising the visibility of a cultural tradition that is widely celebrated among the Asian diaspora, recognizing a day set aside for Lunar New Year would help counter the marginalization the AANHPI community has experienced, particularly in the aftermath of COVID, and help project a lasting message of inclusion and diversity to all in Massachusetts and those who look to Massachusetts as a world leader.
Respectfully submitted,
Linda Champion, Esq.
President
Korean American Citizens League of New England, Inc.
###
Korean American Citizens League of New England is a non-profit organization of Korean American entrepreneurs, investors, business leaders, students, and activists that are united in our mission to work towards equity for all and to encourage civic engagement. KACL’s focus is to empower the next generation of Asian American civic engagement and activism and to support activity that seeks to enhance and improve the quality of life for all Asian Americans.
459
The Issue
No DONATIONS are required at this time! Sign, post & share!!!
We are writing to request your help and support in establishing Lunar New Year as a state holiday. Massachusetts must lead and join other states across the country to recognize Lunay New Year as a state holiday to foster inclusion and support of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) throughout Massachusetts. Massachusetts failure to observe Lunar New Year as a state holiday evidences to the AANHPI community our elected officials and lawmakers do not know how to be fully inclusive and equitable. This is one way to recognize and honor AANHPIs collective contributions to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
I. Why Lunar New Year?
Lunar New Year is the most important cultural holiday for many East and Southeast Asian communities in the United States and around the world. Families gather to honor their ancestors and many AANHPI local communities celebrate the new year with ceremonies, dances, fireworks, and traditional food. Lunar New Year is a global event widely celebrated by millions of Asian Americans and enjoyed by many Americans in the United States.
Lunar New Year is a uniquely significant day for millions in the AANHPI community to celebrate and remember their heritage. Just as other communities of color have lost their culture through generations of oppression and forced assimilation, AANHPI communities run the risk of losing their culture without recognition of this critical cultural holiday.
Lunar New Year is a day of fortune, prosperity, luck, and new beginnings. It is a day for celebrating family, community, and AANHPI history–including all that we have overcome, and all the work we have yet to do. The Asian American story–one of struggle, hardships, and enduring hope–is an unequivocally American one. Lunar New Year, the most important cultural holiday of millions of Asian Americans, must be acknowledged.
II. AANHPIs Are a Critical Constituency.
According to The Boston Foundation, Demographic overview of AAPI communities in Massachusetts, acf_presentation_20211215.pdf (tbf.org) (2021),
According to the U.S. Census, Asian Americans and Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders make up 6.2% of the American population (2020 U.S. Census). The 2020 Boston Foundation data further evidences that AANHPIs remain severely underrepresented across government, corporate leadership, and media. This lack of representation in government leaves us with no voice to advance our position with respect to the significance of this important day. AANHPIs are the least likely group to hold elected office (Reflective Democracy Campaign), and the least likely group to attain management roles (Harvard Business Review).
We applaud the efforts of Quincy, Brookline, Hopkinton, and Wayland. These cities and towns have all signed a law establishing a Lunar New Year holiday in their respective public schools. We ask that the state follow.
As the fastest growing racial group, AANHPIs are dramatically rising in civic engagement and voting power. AANHPIs increased their turnout rate by more than any other racial group between the 2016 and 2020 U.S. presidential elections (2020 U.S. Census). AANHPIs are increasingly demanding change from their elected leaders through voting, organizing, and campaign donations.
III. Recognizing an AANHPI Holiday is Crucial to Fostering AANHPI Belonging.
The time for action is now. Misinformation related to the COVID-19 pandemic led to an unprecedented crisis of racial discrimination and violence against AANHPIs. Hate crimes against AANHPIs during that period of time increased by an alarming percentage across the country. As COVID has loomed since the onset of the pandemic, hate crimes against AANHPIs in 2021 surpassed their record numbers in 2020 (Center for Study of Hate and Extremism). Anti-Asian hate speech increased by 1662% in 2020 compared to 2019. In May 2022, 21% of American adults still believe that Asian Americans are at least partly responsible for COVID-19, almost twice that of the previous year. American born AANHPI individuals continue to be subjected to daily violence and discrimination in the only home they have ever known.
State holidays matter. As a state with a growing AANHPI population, Massachusetts has the opportunity to lead in fostering AANHPI belonging. Establishing a state holiday to recognize the contributions and history of the AANHPI community would be monumental for AANHPIs who call Massachusetts home.
The passage of a Lunar New Year state holiday would be a symbol of hope and progress. By raising the visibility of a cultural tradition that is widely celebrated among the Asian diaspora, recognizing a day set aside for Lunar New Year would help counter the marginalization the AANHPI community has experienced, particularly in the aftermath of COVID, and help project a lasting message of inclusion and diversity to all in Massachusetts and those who look to Massachusetts as a world leader.
Respectfully submitted,
Linda Champion, Esq.
President
Korean American Citizens League of New England, Inc.
###
Korean American Citizens League of New England is a non-profit organization of Korean American entrepreneurs, investors, business leaders, students, and activists that are united in our mission to work towards equity for all and to encourage civic engagement. KACL’s focus is to empower the next generation of Asian American civic engagement and activism and to support activity that seeks to enhance and improve the quality of life for all Asian Americans.
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Petition created on June 16, 2024