After a group of six Asian or Asian-American Syracuse University students were denied service at a local Denny’s restaurant and beaten in its parking lot, protests swept across the university, and the Asian Students in America campus organization was established to promote and foster inclusivity at SU.

More than 20 years after that April 11, 1997, incident, ASIA is still working to create a more welcoming SU environment.

“ASIA is for people wanting to find a community within a community,” said club president Mitchell Liang, a junior systems and information sciences major.

The organization was founded on four pillars: political education, cultural awareness, community service and social prosperity. ASIA’s goal is to teach students about Asian-American identity and activism through studying past Asian-American movements, Liang said. They also shed light on various cultures to bring awareness and appreciation to members’ heritage, Liang added.

“I came from a predominantly white community so I didn’t experience my Asian heritage, but ASIA allowed me to recognize my background,” said vice president Cerinn Park, a junior advertising major.

Willy Joseph Paguyo, a senior psychology major, said he joined ASIA because he felt out of place on SU’s campus because of his heritage.

Paguyo said ASIA fosters a community that’s like a family to him because he meets people who come from similar backgrounds.

“Being born and raised in Hawaii, I was accustomed to the diversity inherent in the islands that stems from people coming from Polynesian, Asian, white and black backgrounds. However, coming to Syracuse University, a predominantly white institution, I was a fish out of water,” he said in a text message.

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For Park, what encouraged her to keep coming back was the people she met, she said.

Liang and Park ran for social chair and cultural diversity chair, respectively, after only a year of being in the club.

Now, the duo works together on the club’s executive board. As president, Liang oversees all the chairholders, while Park does more behind-the-scenes and secretarial work.

They plan events and implement programs within the organization such as Mr. Asia – a male identity pageant, which includes talent, style and Q&A rounds – and barbecues on the Quad. They also have a big and little system, where upperclassmen are assigned a freshman to mentor.

Paguyo said those are his favorite events — the barbecue because he can meet new people and enjoy some food and the Mr. Asia pageant which breaks male stereotypes prevalent in the Asian-American community.

Park began a cultural spotlight program in which the group would focus on a particular region of Asia and work with other organizations that pertain to the region they study, in order to build a community and educate members.

Programs such as those are an important part of ASIA because of the organization’s broad, inclusive nature, Park said. Because it’s an umbrella organization, members try to collaborate with other smaller, Asia-related organizations at SU so that other clubs get a place in the spotlight too.

“ASIA does not exclude people,” Park said. “It creates a community for people who feel they are not represented on campus.”

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While the main focus of the organization is on Asian-Americans — first generation Asian-Americans whose parents were immigrants — the club allows anyone to join regardless of race. They promote social interaction between students because they want members to find a community within SU, Liang said.

“Everyone wants to have fun in college, but to do that you need people, and that is what ASIA is for,” he said. “My main goal this year is making sure everyone feels a part of the family. If you’re looking for a family, then this is the place to be.”

Published on September 4, 2018 at 11:59 pm

Contact Brooke: bnkato@syr.edu