May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! Join us as we celebrate the impact that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders have made on this country’s past, present, and future this month and all year long. Below, we’ve gathered a list of educational and enlightening programs that highlight the achievements, history, culture, and traditions that are airing this month on PBS KVIE, available to stream for free on the PBS app, or available to stream with PBS KVIE Passport.
Programs Airing on PBS KVIE
Rob on the Road: Rob at Home – Region Rising: Janice O’Malley Galizio
May 6 at 7:30PM
Join host Rob Stewart for a conversation with Janice O’Malley Galizio of OCA Sacramento about her Asian American journey. OCA represents Asian Pacific American Advocates, a national organization dedicated to advancing the social, political, and economic well-being of Asian Pacific Islander Americans in the United States.
Snapshots of Confinement
May 6 at 10PM
Uncover photo albums that reveal stories of community and resilience, transforming how this history is understood today. During World War II, the U.S. government initially imposed policies that limited the use of cameras by Japanese Americans in the confinement sites, while simultaneously utilizing photography for propaganda. Despite the ban, Japanese American families found ways to document their lives.
Rob on the Road: Region Rising – Jim Tabuchi
May 13 at 7:30PM
Meet Jim Tabuchi, whose purpose is perseverance. He has infused thousands of students with the transformative power of moving to new heights through music with the Sacramento Mandarins. Tabuchi lives the message of strength and tenacity inspired by his parents and grandparents, whose Japanese American legacy is alive in his daily good deeds. Rob shares Tabuchi’s powerful story in celebration of AAPI Heritage Month.
Photographic Justice: The Corky Lee Story
May 13 at 10PM
Join Chinese American photographer Corky Lee’s epic quest to document Asian American history, culture, and activism for five decades. Using his camera as a “weapon against injustice,” Lee’s art is his activism. His unforgettable images of Asian American life empowered generations. This film’s intimate portrait reveals the triumphs and tragedies of the man behind the lens.
ViewFinder: Before They Take Us Away
May 15 at 7PM
Chronicle the previously untold stories of Japanese Americans who self-evacuated from the West Coast in the wake of forced incarceration during World War II.
Rob on the Road: Rob at Home – Mai Vang
May 20 at 7:30PM
Meet Sacramento City Councilmember Mai Vang, a child of Hmong refugees living the dreams of her ancestors. Vang shares the personal stories that led to her history-making public service and the life lessons she found along the way.
ViewFinder: Vanishing Chinatown
May 22 at 7PM
Discover the story of San Francisco’s changing Chinatown through the story of a family photo studio and the photo archive they left behind.
Programs Available to Stream on the PBS App
KVIE Arts Showcase: The Punjabi American Heritage Society
Discover how the Punjabi American Heritage Society is using art as a resource to help build connections while gaining understanding and preserving culture.
Local, USA: Asian American Stories of Resilience and Beyond, Volumes 1 & 2
Dive into stories that focus on resilience through the lens of family, identities, immigration, and rebuilding. Each volume of Asian American Stories of Resilience and Beyond features a selection of short films from Asian American filmmakers that capture and articulate the complexities of Asian American experiences.
Rising Against Asian Hate: One Day in March
Explore the fight against Asian American hate following the March 2021 mass shootings at three spas in Atlanta. Examine how this critical moment of racial reckoning sheds light on the struggles, triumphs and achievements of AAPI communities. The film is narrated by Sandra Oh with music by Jon Batiste and Cory Wong.
Rob on the Road: Rob at Home – Baldwin Chiu
Meet Sacramento native and filmmaker Baldwin Chiu as he shares his family’s history as Chinese immigrants in the American South in the documentary Far East Deep South.
ViewFinder: Stories in Thread
Explore the craft of traditional Hmong textiles and their significance to identity, inheritance, and cultural survival.
Programs Available to Stream on the PBS App with PBS KVIE Passport
PBS KVIE Passport is a benefit of station membership. Members gain extended access to more videos available to stream on the PBS app.
American Masters: Nam June Paik – Moon Is the Oldest TV
See the world through the eyes of Nam June Paik, the father of video art and coiner of the term “electronic superhighway.” Born in Japan-occupied Korea, Paik went on to become a pillar of the American avant-garde and transformed modern image-making with his sculptures, films, and performances. Experience his creative evolution as Academy Award nominee Steven Yeun reads from Paik’s own writings.
Asian Americans
Uncover the history of identity, contributions, and challenges experienced by Asian Americans in the 5-part film series Asian Americans. As America becomes more diverse and more divided while facing unimaginable challenges, how do we move forward together? Told through intimate personal stories, the series will cast a new lens on U.S. history and the ongoing role that Asian Americans have played.
Fanny: The Right to Rock
Co-founded by Filipina American and queer teenagers, Fanny is the first all-women band to release an album with a major record label (Warner/Reprise, 1970). Revered by David Bowie, meet the most groundbreaking rock group you’ve never heard of… yet.
Local, USA: A Tale of Three Chinatowns
Explore the survival of urban ethnic neighborhoods in three American cities: Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Boston. Through the voices of residents, community activists, developers, and government officials, the film looks at the forces altering each community and the challenges that go with them, including the pressing issues of urban development and gentrification.
Pacific Heartbeat: Daughters of the Waves
Join young surfer Vahine Fierro on her journey to reach Olympic gold. In Tahitian culture, riding the waves is an ancestral activity from which women had been gradually eliminated, but now surfing is open to women, just in time for the Olympics. Coming from an entire family of surfers, Fierro and her two sisters hope to make a living with their passion and travel the world.