Smithsonian Center for Folklife & Cultural Heritage

An illustration of an Asian woman with various symbols above her head including an American Flag, an "I voted" sticker, a ballot box, and a Chinese character.

The Weight of the Asian American Vote

When Asian Americans adopt a new nation, how might voting serve as a means for expressing our varied senses of identity and community?

Freshly backed, round, golden brown tortas sit to cool in their crinkled metal baking tins.

Torta—Filipino Christmas Cake, I Think

For the majority of the year, I am half Filipina. But during Christmas, I try to embrace this identity fully through a few small rituals.

인삼주 Insam-ju is a ginseng liquor made by preserving ginseng in alcohol above thirty proof. Korean people often make insam-ju at home and take a shot daily for its health benefits. It is also shared with special guests and is often paired with samgyetang (ginseng chicken soup). (Photo by Grace Dahye Kwon)

How Ginseng Connects Me to the Roots of My Korean American Community

Although I grew up in the Northern Virginia area, with the third largest Korean American population in the United States, I always felt foreign, even in my own neighborhood. Adults butchered my name “Dahye” until I finally changed it to “Grace,” just to get through morning roll call.

After composing and transcribing music for my wedding day, Red Baraat was born. Dave Sharma leads the baraat (wedding procession) on dhol, as I walk with my mother, family, and friends. August 27, 2005. (Photo courtesy of Sunny Jain)

The Tradition of Now: Jainism, Jazz, and the Punjabi Dhol Drum

While the originations of the dhol are not known with complete certainty, what is known is that it is a sound that has migrated.

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