Congress passed a joint Congressional Resolution in 1978 to commemorate Asian American Heritage Week during the first week of May. This date was chosen because two important anniversaries occurred during this time: the arrival of the first Japanese immigrants in America on May 7, 1843 and the completion of the transcontinental railroad (by many Chinese laborers) on May 10, 1869. Congress later voted to expand it from a week long to a month long celebration. The first Asian American in the United States Senate was Hawaii's Hiram Fong. Descended from Chinese immigrants, Fong was elected to the Senate in 1959.

Asian-American Pacific Islander Heritage Month Dear Colleagues, Welcome to this special edition of the American Legacy Foundation®'s May e-News, with special focus on Asian-American Pacific Islander Heritage Month. This issue emphasizes the foundation's commitment to Priority Populations by highlighting news of interest, creative Legacy initiatives and the innovative work conducted by our grantees in communities across the nation. Read Article ...    Update on Ohio Tobacco Prevention Foundation The American Legacy Foundation is continuing its legal challenge to Ohio's efforts to divert its tobacco settlement funds for other purposes. Read Article ...    Grantee Spotlight: Two Legacy Grantees to Focus on Asian American/Pacific - Islander Populations The American Legacy Foundation recently awarded a number of grants to Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities as part of its Priority Populations Initiative. Here is a sampling of the organizations aimed at addressing disparities in tobacco control for this community: Read Article ...    Thank You for Not Smoking Images portraying smoking on the silver screen play an influential role in determining whether or not young people will start smoking speakers told a packed audience during a Capitol Hill briefing, including a Hollywood producer, a prominent researcher from the American Academy of Pediatrics and a young woman whose mother lost her life to smoking at age 31. Read Article ...    American Legacy Foundation Supports the U.S. Public Health Service 2008 Clinical Practice Guideline: Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence On May 7, the U.S. Public Health Service released its 2008 Clinical Practice Guideline: Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence. The American Legacy Foundation® strongly supports these recommendations in the effort to help the 45 million Americans who smoke to quit. Read Article ...    truth® Continues its Spring Fling Throughout the month of May, new elements from the truth® youth smoking prevention campaign will roll out online, on television, and in movie theaters. Read Article ...

truth® or Consequences Grants Awarded The American Legacy Foundation has awarded more than $1.2 million in grants to 11 organizations as a part of a new grants initiative: Community Announcements The American Legacy Foundation is proud to be part of a field of experts in tobacco control and to share recent announcements from other organizations in the public health field.