On Wednesday, May 22, UMass Chan Medical School celebrated Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month with an event centered around storytelling through food. Coordinated by the Diversity and Inclusion Office, UMass Chan’s Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association and the Asian American and Pacific Islander Employee Resource Group of UMass Memorial Health, the event was inspired by a concept developed by Tender Table, an organization that celebrates Black and brown communities by celebrating traditions, joy, resilience and collective liberation through storytelling and food.
“Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Month is a time of recognition, remembrance and celebration of Americans of Asian backgrounds and what they have found common with each other across the diaspora,” said Jay Fong, MD, assistant professor of pediatrics and co-chair of the Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Employee Resource Group at UMass Memorial.
Dr. Fong, who is of Chinese descent, said that because the celebration covers such a large region of the earth, food was the perfect way to celebrate.
“Food links us back to our heritage, it conveys joy, touches on a few senses, builds bridges and is a universal language,” he said. Fong hopes the event is a catalyst to more collaboration among affinity groups across UMass Chan.
Hyesung Alice Min, a biostatistician in the Department of Population & Quantitative Health Sciences, brought Korean rice cakes and talked about the memories that the recipe connected her to, particularly those of her grandmother who taught her how to make it.
“Many Asians have tried to blend in but after the murder of George Floyd and the rise of hate crimes against Asians, I thought I should appreciate having a unique history,” Min said of celebrating Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
For Min, an appreciation of her culture has led to a desire to improve belonging and diversity at UMass Chan. She is a proud member of the Department of Population & Quantitative Health Sciences’ Diversity Action Committee, which is charged with planning diversity and inclusion activities for the department.
Attendees of the food and storytelling event were pleased with both the quality of food and depth of community building.
“It felt incredibly special to hear and see people bring their family members, experiences and memories into the space through food. We all left the event feeling connected and nourished,” said Lynn Hernandez, PhD, assistant vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion.
