Today marks the last day of Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, and while we initially planned to share this earlier, following the tragedies from last week, it didn’t quite feel right. However, our AAPI community far and wide is deserving our support and celebration, not just in May but throughout the year. 

We celebrate AAPI Month and pay tributes to the contributions and influence of the AAPI community on the history, arts, culture and achievements of the U.S. This is especially important given the rise of racism we’ve seen throughout our country and world. Let’s all put in the work and support our AAPI neighbors! Here’s what you can do…

Shop independently-owned Asian-American businesses and makers. Here’s a great running list from Boston.com and another from Thrillist. What’s your favorite?

Familiarize yourself with and local and national AAPI organizations and resources, and donate if you can. Here’s a great list from the City of Boston along with a powerful message from Mayor Wu’s Office of Arts and Culture.

And support AAPI arts by reading, watching and visiting exhibits. Our local libraries have great lists of movies and books, and we also recommend checking out the schedule of events from the Asian American Theatre Artists of Boston (AATAB) and Pao Arts Center, which promotes cultural equity in Greater Boston for the API community.