05/22/2026
This month, we’re shining a spotlight on the Houston Asian American Archive (HAAA) at Rice University! Established in 2010 at Rice’s Chao Center for Asian Studies, HAAA is dedicated to preserving the history of Houston’s AAPI community by conducting oral history interviews; collecting documents, photographs, memorabilia, and artifacts; putting on exhibitions; and supporting teaching and student research on Asian American life. As of 2024, HAAA has collected over 450 oral histories that collectively demonstrate a diverse tableau of experiences related to immigration, career building, education, military service, racial discrimination, marriage and familial life, musical and artistic pursuits, religion, civic engagement and social justice organizing within Houston’s Asian American community. The archive is a particularly strong resource for understanding Asian Americans’ experiences of the COVID-19 pandemic and the wave of anti-Asian hate speech and racial violence that erupted in 2020 and 2021. Many of these interviews are freely accessible to the public at haaa.rice.edu. HAAA continues to conduct oral history interviews that will serve as invaluable resources for future researchers, and actively supports ongoing research projects that seek to expand public awareness of Houston’s Asian American history and community. If you’re interested in participating in an interview, reach out to [email protected].
