Celebrating Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month
By Office of Communications & Marketing | May 16, 2022
Congress established Asian Pacific American Heritage Week in 1978. In 1992, President George H. W. Bush signed legislation annually designating May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. It was renamed Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in commemoration of two significant anniversaries: the arrival of the first Japanese immigrant in the U.S. on May 7, 1843, and the completion, on May 10, 1869, of the first transcontinental railroad, which could not have been built without the labor of thousands of Chinese workers.
Downstate is proud to be home to students, faculty, and staff from various backgrounds and regions around the globe. We celebrate this month in acknowledgment of the achievements and contributions of people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent. We understand that a rich multicultural environment enhances educational and life experiences for everyone.
We proudly share this video featuring Noriyuki (Nori) Murakami, M.D., clinical assistant professor in the Department of Medicine. Dr. Murakami founded the inpatient addiction medicine consult service along with Drs. Latif Salam and Kaycie Cobb. He is one of the core faculty for the Human Rights Clinic in partnership with Physicians for Human Rights/Downstate Chapter and the Brooklyn Free Clinic. Read his bio here.
We are sincerely grateful for the many contributions of Asian Pacific Americans in our classrooms, our research laboratories, and throughout Downstate.
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Contact: Dawn S. Walker
917.439.9666 | 347.533.2071
dawn.walker@downstate.edu
About SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University is the borough's only academic medical center for health education, research, and patient care. It is a 342-bed facility serving the healthcare needs of New York City and Brooklyn's 2.6 million residents. University Hospital of Brooklyn (UHB) is Downstate's teaching hospital, backed by an outstanding medical school's expertise and world-class academic center research facilities. More than 800 physicians, representing 53 specialties and subspecialties—many of them ranked as tops in their fields—comprise Downstate's staff.
In addition to high-risk neonatal and infant services, pediatric nephrology, and dialysis (kidney diseases)—and offering the only kidney transplantation program in Brooklyn, among many other distinctive programs—Downstate also sponsors a major learning center for young children with developmental disorders and disabilities. In addition to UHB, Downstate comprises a College of Medicine, College of Nursing, School of Health Professions, a School of Graduate Studies, a School of Public Health, and a multifaceted biotechnology initiative, including the Downstate Biotechnology Incubator and BioBAT for early-stage and more mature companies, respectively. For more information, visit www.downstate.edu or follow us on Twitter at @sunydownstate.