Public schools across the suburbs are gearing up to teach Asian American history this fall, after Illinois became the first state in the nation to require it through a law aiming for more representation and inclusion in the classroom.
Illinois adopted the Teaching Equitable Asian American History Act last July, and it takes effect in elementary and high schools statewide for the 2022-23 school year.
The landmark legislation was introduced before the COVID-19 pandemic and stalled amid a surge in violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders as the virus raged on.
“It kind of … evolved into this response to anti-Asian racism that we saw increasing … very much tied to COVID-19 and the political rhetoric at the time,” said Grace Pai, executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Chicago, which spearheaded the legislation.
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