Our Youth Runners Celebrate AAPI Heritage Month
As part of our celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, we spoke to three of our Rising New York Road Runners Youth Ambassadors about what it means to be AAPI, achievements in the AAPI community that inspire them, the importance of AAPI representation in the running community, how racism and xenophobia have affected them, and more. These young athletes are proud to represent their community as runners and students and they look forward to a running world that becomes increasingly diverse, inclusive, and welcoming to all.
Ruiwen (Raven) Tang
"We can all build a more inclusive and supportive environment"
I am the daughter of two Chinese parents. I’ve grown up with traditions from my parents’ hometowns. Whether it’s through folding dumplings with my family by hand on the weekends, setting the table with rice and chopsticks almost every meal, hanging up bright red, festive couplets and lanterns during Lunar New Year, or writing and presenting about Chinese history and figures during Chinese school, my Chinese background has heavily influenced my growth, understanding of family, appreciation for culture, and education.
To me, being a part of the Asian American and Pacific Islander community means experiencing beautiful cultural traditions, connecting with others in the community, and having a place and group of people across the globe that I can recognize as a second home and enthusiastically share with others.
Every child should be able to visualize themselves going into their dream career and believe that they have the potential to pursue their dreams. These ambitions are so much more plausible and tangible when children have role models who look like them in the fields they are interested in. Seeing an AAPI woman who comes from an immigrant household succeeding in the New York City Marathon or proudly representing America at international competitions and also crucially being talked and written about in media (rather than excluded or glossed over) would mean so much to me as a Chinese American girl.
Running has definitely helped me feel a sense of belonging and inclusion. I’ve met amazing teammates and friends through race opportunities and participating on sports teams and built a community fostering support. I would encourage other members of the AAPI community to take up running. Although there may not currently be a lot of representation for the community in running, we can choose to be the ones to inspire the next generation.
The racism and xenophobia toward the AAPI community have been a big concern for my family and me. I am worried when I go outside for runs or walks that I will be physically or verbally assaulted. Before the pandemic, I also encountered vicious comments from strangers on the subway and streets.
My peers who are not AAPI can support the community by taking time to learn about the history of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States, actively discouraging and not using discriminatory or hateful language, and stepping in when they see something that’s not right. We can all build a more inclusive and supportive environment by seeing others as humans who belong rather than labelling or dismissing others with stereotypes.
Lan Huse
"Running can tie us together"
Happy Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month!
My name is Lan Huse, and I am a Rising New York Road Runners Youth Ambassador. I am AAPI (Asian American and Pacific Islander) because I am half Vietnamese and a quarter Chinese and I live in America. The AAPI community helped and helps shape the country into its greatness by contributing artistic talent, innovative creativity, and cultural depth in this diverse nation.
As a runner, having an Asian American role model inspired me to keep pushing and kindled my competitive spirit. In eighth grade, when I started running, there was a 10th grade prodigy dominating our league. I watched in awe as she crushed every single race she ran and gaped at the seemingly impossible times displayed next to her name.
I believe that part of the reason why I was so inspired by her was because I could visualize my own running in this girl. We were both Asian, both girls, and both high school students. Her leadership brought me my love for running.
The sport has always given me so much support of my racial identity. After the horrible acts of xenophobic and racist violence sparked the Asian Lives Matter movement in the past couple months, my running peers reached out to me almost instantly to let me know that they were there if I needed to talk to anyone.
What my past experiences have revealed is that running can tie us together. The diversity and representation of all people in running has shown that no matter what race, everyone is welcome to run.
Noelle Parker
"Running should be for everyone!"
My name is Noelle Parker and from my name, you would not know that I am AAPI but I am. Being Asian American means that you have someone in your family tree that is Asian. I am half Chinese-American as my mother's ethnicity is Chinese. My maternal grandmother was from Taiwan and my maternal grandfather is from Hong Kong. My father's ethnic background is Irish/English/Polish/Dutch. Geez, that is a lot! I am 100% American in that my background is a melting pot!
When I run, I don't really think about being Asian American. Almost everyone in my class at school and Rising New York Road Runners running group are AAPI since my school is a Mandarin immersion school. This makes me not really think about whether someone running with me is Asian or not. Running should be for everyone! People should be included and welcome regardless of their ethnicity.