The City of Signal Hill will honor Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month with the raising of a commemorative flag in front of City Hall on Monday, May 15.
The month of May was first designated as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month by President George H. W. Bush in 1992, as a time to celebrate the contributions of people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent.
The City of Signal Hill began flying commemorative flags in front of city hall in 2020, despite opposition from Mayor Lori Woods and religious members of the community at the time.
The first three commemorative flags approved to fly in front of Signal Hill in 2020 were the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) flag, the LGBTQ Pride flag, and the Women’s Suffrage movement flag.
The list of commemorative flags approved by the Signal Hill City Council has steadily changed and grown since 2020, and now includes the AAPI Heritage Flag.
To further celebrate AAPI Heritage Month, the City invites the public to two free movie screenings at the Signal Hill Public Library (1800 E Hill St.), “Finding Ohana” on Tuesday, May 16, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. and “The Donut King” on Tuesday, May 23 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
AAPI History in Signal Hill
There was once a deep-rooted community of Japanese Americans in Signal Hill over a century ago, many of whom were Japanese cucumber farmers. But after the passage of the 1920 Alien Land Law, people of Asian descent were no longer allowed to own land in California.
According to an article by local historian Claudine Burnett, many Japanese farmers left to find better treatment in Texas and Mexico, while others moved into the cities such as Long Beach, where white businessmen and lawmakers then accused Asians of trying to take over local commerce, and attempted to bar them from owning businesses in California or fish in California waters.
According to 2022 US census data, 22.4% of Signal…
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