Koo, the director of the District’s Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs, is also the point person for the city’s events in May celebrating Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, which is marking its 20th anniversary this year.
What kind of events does the city have on tap for the rest of the month?
We have a number of events, but on May 21, we will host “Asian Americana,” a panel discussion about families in the Asian and Pacific Islander community. And then on May 31, Mayor Vincent Gray is going to be at our big celebration of the month at Johns Hopkins University’s D.C. campus.
Of all the events, which are you most excited about personally?
I’m excited about the last one because that is our annual signature event. It’s an event where it’s open to the public, and we get people from our community and the non-Asian population. It’s a really feel-good celebration to celebrate, commemorate and educate.
Has the 100th anniversary of the cherry blossoms helped to attract more attention this year?
It definitely had an impact. There are a lot of those anniversary dates that happened this year, so I think that was a reason why many organizations in the API community tried to make this year’s heritage month stand out a little bit more than other years.
Did Ward 8 Councilman Marion Barry’s comments about the Asian community have an effect?
I do not think that Marion Barry’s comment had anything to do with it.SClB
What’s the state of the city’s Asian and Pacific Islander community?
It’s the fastest-growing population in the city. Even though number-wise and percentage-wise, it’s not that huge, we are still 4 percent of the District’s population. We have a younger population moving into the city, and there’s different dynamics going on, and we really want to engage that community.
— Alan Blinder
