List of Asian-American firsts

Asian-Americans are an ethnic group in the United States, denoting Americans of Asian descent. The phrase Asian-American was coined by Yuji Ichioka and Emma Gee in 1968 during the founding of the Asian American Political Alliance,[1][2] and started to be used by the U.S. census in 1980.[3]

Firsts by Asian-Americans in various fields have historically marked footholds, often leading to more widespread cultural change. The shorthand phrase for them is "breaking the color barrier".[4] One commonly cited example is that of Wataru Misaka, who became the first person of color,[5] and the first Asian-American, to be a National Basketball Association player (in 1947.)[6][7]

Arts and entertainment

Academy Awards

Fashion

Film (aside from the Academy Awards)

Literature (aside from the Pulitzer and Nobel Prizes)

Music

Pulitzer Prizes

Television

Theater

Other

Business and commerce

  • 1986: Gerald Tsai becomes the first Asian-American CEO of a Fortune 500 company (The American Can Company; #140 on the 1986 list).[32]
  • 2013: Kevin Tsujihara becomes the first Asian-American CEO of a major Hollywood studio (Warner Bros Entertainment).[33]
  • 2022: Rose Lee, current CEO of Cornerstone Building Brands, was elected by Honeywell International to be the newest member of their board of directors, becoming the first Korean American woman to sit on the board of a Fortune 100 company.

Dentistry

Diplomacy

Education

Journalism

  • 1937: Ella Kam Oon Chun becomes the first Asian-American woman reporter on The Honolulu Advertiser.[40]
  • 1943: Ah Jook Ku becomes the first Asian-American reporter for the Associated Press.[41]
  • 1970: Al Young becomes the first Asian American U.S. mainland sportswriter at a metro daily newspaper The Bridgeport (CT) Post-Telegram.[42]
  • 1993: Connie Chung becomes the first Asian-American to anchor one of America's major network newscasts (CBS Evening News).[43]

Judiciary and politics

Official portrait of Vice President Kamala Harris, 2021

Military

Religion

Science and technology

Aerospace and aviation

  • 1985: Ellison Onizuka becomes the first Asian-American in space, as an astronaut on the space shuttle Discovery.[77][78]

Mathematics

Physics

Nobel Prizes

Sports

Baseball

Basketball

Asian American point guard Wataru Misaka broke basketball's color barrier as the first non-white player to play in the NBA in 1947.

Figure skating

Football (Gridiron football)

Golf

  • 1994: Tiger Woods becomes the first Asian-American to win the United States Amateur Championship. (Woods' mixed ancestry – ¼ Chinese, ¼ Thai, ¼ African-American, ⅛ white, and ⅛ Native American – also made him the first African-American to achieve this feat. He was also the first of only five golfers of primarily non-European descent to win a men's major, with the others being Vijay Singh (an Indian Fijian), Michael Campbell (a Māori from New Zealand), Y.E. Yang (South Korean), and Collin Morikawa (Japanese American).)

Olympics

  • 1948: Victoria Manalo Draves wins gold in platform and springboard diving in the 1948 Olympics, becoming the first Asian-American to win a gold medal in the Summer Olympics.[97]

Tennis

  • 1989: Michael Chang becomes the first Asian-American winner of a Grand Slam tennis tournament in men's singles, winning the French Open. To this day, he remains the only male player of Asian descent, regardless of nationality, to win a men's singles Grand Slam event.

Hockey

See also

    References

    1. "U.S. History in Context – Document". ic.galegroup.com. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
    2. Daryl (2012). Rethinking the Asian American Movement. New York: Routledge. pp. 9–13, 18, 26, 29, 32–35, 42–48, 80, 108, 116–117, 139. ISBN 978-0-415-80081-5
    3. "After 50 years of 'Asian American,' advocates say the term is 'more essential than ever'". NBC News. May 31, 2018. Archived from the original on January 23, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    4. Brockell, Gillian. "He broke pro basketball's color barrier. Now Jeremy Lin joins him in the history books". Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 16, 2019. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
    5. "Wataru Misaka, who broke pro basketball's color barrier, dies at 95". sports.yahoo.com. November 22, 2019. Archived from the original on January 8, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    6. Goldstein, Richard (November 21, 2019). "Wat Misaka, 95, First Nonwhite in Modern Pro Basketball, Dies". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on November 22, 2019. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    7. "Wat Misaka, first person of color to play in the NBA, dead at age 95". NBC News. November 22, 2019. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    8. Zhao, Xiaojian; Ph.D, Edward J. W. Park (November 26, 2013). Asian Americans: An Encyclopedia of Social, Cultural, Economic, and Political History [3 volumes]: An Encyclopedia of Social, Cultural, Economic, and Political History. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-59884-240-1. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
    9. "Ngor, Haing S." Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on July 20, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2007.
    10. Bahr, Lindsey (April 22, 2021). "Oscar slate holds 'firsts' for Asian actors, filmmakers". AP News. Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
    11. "Film Producer Janet Yang Elected First Asian American President Of The Academy". HuffPost. August 3, 2022.
    12. Menkes, Suzy (December 3, 2012). "Balenciaga Taps Alexander Wang". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    13. Ling, Wessie; Segre-Reinach, Simona (April 20, 2018). Fashion in Multiple Chinas: Chinese Styles in the Transglobal Landscape. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-83860-850-7.
    14. Chan, Anthony B. (February 8, 2007). Perpetually Cool: The Many Lives of Anna May Wong (1905-1961). Scarecrow Press. p. 17. ISBN 978-1-4616-7041-4. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved October 21, 2020.
    15. "Dayyan Eng to direct Golden Rooster opener -- china.org.cn". www.china.org.cn. Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
    16. Loughrey, Clarisse (August 27, 2018). "John Cho interview: How he became a cheerleader for cinema's newest genre". the Independent. Archived from the original on November 9, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
    17. General, Ryan (July 25, 2018). "John Cho Makes History as the First Asian Actor Leading a Hollywood Thriller in 'Searching'". NextShark. Archived from the original on July 29, 2018. Retrieved July 29, 2018.
    18. Coleman, Nancy (January 5, 2020). "Awkwafina Becomes First Asian-American to Win Best Actress at Golden Globes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on January 6, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    19. "Far East Movement Talk BTS, New Album 'Bridging East and West': Interview". Billboard. Archived from the original on February 17, 2020. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
    20. "Gobind Behari Lal, Reporter; Shared Pulitzer Prize in 1937". The New York Times. April 3, 1982. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on July 27, 2020. Retrieved July 27, 2020.
    21. "The Asia Foundation Announces Pulitzer-Prize Winning Journalist Sheryl WuDunn to Receive Lotus Leadership Award". The Asia Foundation. March 4, 2015. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    22. "The Authors | Half the Sky | Independent Lens | PBS". www.pbs.org. Archived from the original on January 14, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    23. "TODAY: Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Sheryl WuDunn to speak on 'Why we should change the world'". YaleNews. January 26, 2016. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    24. "Anna May Wong". National Women's History Museum. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    25. IANS. "Indian American Actor-Comedian Aziz Ansari Wins His First Golden Globe Award". Archived from the original on July 28, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
    26. "Why Aziz Ansari becoming the first Asian-American to win a Golden Globe is so important". January 8, 2018. Archived from the original on December 2, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
    27. Yam, Kimberly. "Aziz Ansari Becomes First Asian-American To Win Golden Globe For Best Actor In TV Show". Huffington Post. Archived from the original on February 16, 2019. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
    28. Chen, Wei-Huan (September 12, 2019). "SNL hires first Asian-American cast member in 44 year history". HoustonChronicle.com. Archived from the original on September 23, 2019. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    29. "'Saturday Night Live' welcomes 1st Asian American cast member". TODAY.com. September 12, 2019. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    30. Zia, Helen (January 1, 1995). "Author Profile: Frank Chin [in Notable Asian Americans]". Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center BookDragon. Archived from the original on May 4, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    31. "First Asian-American Miss America". www.cbsnews.com. October 3, 2000. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    32. Zweigenhaft, Richard L.; Domhoff, G. William (July 16, 2011). The New CEOs: Women, African American, Latino, and Asian American Leaders of Fortune 500 Companies. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. p. 2. ISBN 978-1-4422-0767-7. first asian american ceo.
    33. "Petaluma native Kevin Tsujihara named CEO of Warner Bros. studio". The Press Democrat. January 29, 2013. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved January 29, 2013.
    34. Sekiguchi, Eugene (November 28, 2014). "It Depends on Where You Are". Discover Nikkei. Archived from the original on January 12, 2020. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
    35. "A Personal Stake - USC News". October 23, 2002. Archived from the original on August 6, 2019. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
    36. "Fujio Matsuda, first Asian-American president of a major US university, dies at 95", Hawaii News Now, August 24, 2020, archived from the original on August 29, 2020, retrieved August 26, 2020
    37. "Chang-Lin Tien | Office of the Chancellor". chancellor.berkeley.edu. Archived from the original on February 15, 2020. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
    38. Rastello, Sandrine. "Dartmouth President Kim Nominated by Obama for World Bank". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on March 30, 2012. Retrieved April 17, 2012.
    39. 김용 총장 세계银 총재 후보 지명. Yonhap News. March 24, 2012. Archived from the original on May 20, 2013. Retrieved April 17, 2012.
    40. Brislin, Tom. "Hawaii Journalism History". University of Hawai'i. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
    41. "starbulletin.com | News | /2007/08/10/". archives.starbulletin.com. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    42. "Honor Roll". Asian American Journalists Association. February 23, 2022. Retrieved March 17, 2023.
    43. "Connie Chung". Biography. Archived from the original on February 15, 2020. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
    44. "New York Times Dec. 21, 1977". The New York Times. December 21, 1977. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    45. "Phoenix New Times: THE ONG DYNASTYGROWING UP CHINESE-AMERICAN". Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    46. "Achievements of Chinese-Americans in Arizona History". Archived from the original on November 9, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    47. Cumulative notes for the Zōon Politikon
    48. "Senator Hiram L. Fong - first Asian American to serve in the United States Senate". Senatorfong.com. Archived from the original on February 29, 2020. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
    49. "Biographical Directory of the U.S. Congress - Retro Member details". Bioguideretro.congress.gov. Archived from the original on August 9, 2020. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
    50. "5 Asian American political trailblazers who changed the United States". NBC News. May 6, 2019. Archived from the original on January 23, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    51. "Herbert Choy, 88; First Asian American to Serve as a Federal Judge". Los Angeles Times. March 14, 2004. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    52. "Patsy Takemoto Mink (1927–2002)". December 20, 2007. Archived from the original on December 20, 2007.
    53. "2019-3086 SCR50 HD1 SMA". www.capitol.hawaii.gov. Archived from the original on November 29, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    54. "Office of the President". Bellevue College. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
    55. "Susan Oki Mollway, First Asian American Woman on Federal Bench: 'Believe in Yourself' | United States Courts". www.uscourts.gov. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
    56. "The first fifteen : how Asian American women became federal judges". catalog.libraries.wm.edu. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
    57. Witte, Brian; Chea, Terence (May 3, 2022). "Norman Mineta, transportation secretary in 9/11 era, dies". Associated Press. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
    58. Scharper, Julie (January 21, 2015). "Thousands celebrate Hogan inauguration at gala". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on April 26, 2019. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
    59. "Kamala Harris is Joe Biden's Running Mate". CNN.com. August 11, 2020. Archived from the original on August 19, 2020. Retrieved August 11, 2020.
    60. "Joe Biden selects California Sen. Kamala Harris as running mate". Associated Press. August 11, 2020. Archived from the original on October 16, 2020. Retrieved August 12, 2020. selecting the first African American woman and South Asian American to compete on a major party's presidential ticket
    61. "Kamala Harris' selection as VP resonates with Black women". Associated Press. August 12, 2020. Archived from the original on August 12, 2020. Retrieved August 12, 2020. making her the first Black woman on a major party's presidential ticket ... It also marks the first time a person of Asian descent is on the presidential ticket.
    62. Tensley, Brandon; Wright, Jasmine (November 7, 2020). "Harris bursts through another barrier, becoming the first female, first Black and first South Asian vice president-elect". CNN. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
    63. Horowitz, Juliana Menasce; Budiman, Abby (August 18, 2020). "Key findings about multiracial identity in the U.S. as Harris becomes vice presidential nominee". Pew Research Center. Archived from the original on November 7, 2020. Retrieved November 8, 2020.
    64. "Kamala Harris Makes History As First Female, Black, Asian American Vice President". Forbes. November 7, 2020. Archived from the original on November 13, 2020. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
    65. Yardley, William (March 10, 2014). "Kurt Chew-Een Lee, Singular Marine, Dies at 88". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 16, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    66. "Best Wishes". Newspapers.com. January 13, 1961. p. 14. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
    67. Register of Retired Commissioned and Warrant Officers, Regular and Reserve, of the United States Navy and Marine Corps. U.S. Government Printing Office. 1964. p. 65. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
    68. "Overseas Contingency Operations Profiles". Asia Pacific Americans in the United States Army. United States Army. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
    69. "The New Head of the U.S. Pacific Command Talks to TIME". Time. Archived from the original on March 2, 2020. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
    70. "Ambassador Harry Harris". U.S. Embassy & Consulate in South Korea. Archived from the original on February 14, 2020. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
    71. Losey, Stephen (June 19, 2020). "CMSgt JoAnne Bass to become first woman to serve as chief master sergeant of the Air Force". Air Force Times. Archived from the original on October 17, 2021. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
    72. Casiano, Louis (June 19, 2020). "Air Force names first woman as top noncommissioned officer of any US military branch". Foxnews. Archived from the original on July 15, 2020. Retrieved June 20, 2020.
    73. Flores, Jessica. "Air Force chooses JoAnne Bass as first woman to serve as top enlisted leader: 'The history of the moment isn't lost on me'". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on June 24, 2020. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
    74. "Cantor Angela Warnick Buchdahl - the face of the modern Jew". Jewishtimesasia.org. Archived from the original on February 16, 2020. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
    75. "Angela Warnick Buchdahl invested as first Asian-American cantor". Jwa.org. May 16, 1999. Archived from the original on January 1, 2020. Retrieved November 19, 2010.
    76. Rubenstein, Steve (December 14, 2002). "Asian bishop is a first for S.F. and nation / Asian American bishop is first for S.F., nation". SFGate. Archived from the original on March 13, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    77. "Ellison Onizuka, first Asian-American astronaut, brought Hawaii to space". NBC News. January 25, 2016. Archived from the original on January 23, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    78. Smith, Yvette (May 8, 2019). "Ellison Onizuka: First Asian American in Space". NASA. Archived from the original on December 30, 2019. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    79. Yau, Shing-Tung; Nadis, Steve (2019). The Shape of a Life: One Mathematician's Search for the Universe's Hidden Geometry. Yale University Press. p. 125. Bibcode:2019shli.book.....Y. Stephen Hawking invited me to discuss [the proof] with him at Cambridge University in late August 1978. I gladly accepted.... Travel was difficult, however, because the British Consulate had recently taken my Hong Kong resident card, maintaining that I could not keep it now that I had a U.S. green card. In the process, I had become stateless. I was no longer a citizen of any country.... until I became a U.S. citizen in 1990.
    80. "Dr. Chien-Shiung Wu, The First Lady of Physics". Retrieved November 29, 2021.
    81. Zhao, Xiaojian; Ph.D, Edward J. W. Park (November 26, 2013). Asian Americans: An Encyclopedia of Social, Cultural, Economic, and Political History [3 volumes]: An Encyclopedia of Social, Cultural, Economic, and Political History. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-59884-240-1. Archived from the original on July 10, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
    82. Lariosa, Joseph (June 26, 2013). "Fil-Am was 1st Asian to play in major league baseball". Filipino Star News. Michigan. Archived from the original on April 25, 2018. Retrieved April 24, 2018.Linda J. Borish; David K. Wiggins; Gerald R. Gems (October 4, 2016). The Routledge History of American Sport. Taylor & Francis. p. 360. ISBN 978-1-317-66249-5. Southern Californian Bobby Balcena was the first Asian American to play Major League Baseball.Florante Peter Ibanez; Roselyn Estepa Ibanez (2009). Filipinos in Carson and the South Bay. Arcadia Publishing. p. 73. ISBN 978-0-7385-7036-5.
    83. "Mariners Hire the First Asian-American Manager". The New York Times. Associated Press. November 20, 2008. Archived from the original on October 8, 2021. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
    84. Sharkey-Gotlieb, Simon (October 27, 2020). "Roberts becomes 2nd Black, 1st Asian manager to win World Series". The Score. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
    85. "Marlins hire Kim Ng as MLB's first female GM". ESPN.com. November 13, 2020. Archived from the original on November 13, 2020. Retrieved November 13, 2020.
    86. "Wat Misaka, first person of color to play in the NBA, dead at age 95". NBC News. November 22, 2019. Archived from the original on February 12, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    87. Arnovitz, Kevin (February 13, 2012). "Erik Spoelstra Impressed By Jeremy Lin". ESPN. Archived from the original on November 3, 2013. Retrieved June 27, 2013.
    88. Medina, Andrei (June 22, 2012). "Fil-Am Coach Erik Spoelstra Steers Heat to Historic NBA Win". GMA News. Archived from the original on November 1, 2013. Retrieved June 27, 2013.
    89. "Trail Blazers make change in general manager position" (Press release). Portland Trail Blazers. May 23, 2011. Archived from the original on May 25, 2011. Retrieved May 23, 2011.
    90. "Jeremy Lin becomes first Asian-American NBA champion". NBCS Bay Area. June 13, 2019. Archived from the original on May 22, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    91. "UC Riverside Head Men's Basketball Coach, David Patrick, Heads to Arkansas; UCR Associate Head Coach, Mike Magpayo to Lead Highlanders Going Forward" (Press release). UC Riverside Highlanders. July 1, 2020. Archived from the original on July 4, 2020. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
    92. "7 Asian American sports trailblazers who changed their games". NBC News. May 23, 2019. Archived from the original on January 23, 2020. Retrieved February 16, 2020.
    93. Freeman, Mike (April 15, 1992). "For Chung, NFL Dream Has Special Glow". Washington Post. Retrieved January 6, 2019.
    94. Zhao, Xiaojian; Ph.D, Edward J. W. Park (November 26, 2013). Asian Americans: An Encyclopedia of Social, Cultural, Economic, and Political History [3 volumes]: An Encyclopedia of Social, Cultural, Economic, and Political History. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1-59884-240-1. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
    95. "Falcons K Younghoe Koo is the NFL's scoring leader". falconswire.usatoday.com. December 7, 2020. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
    96. "Grady Jarrett, Younghoe Koo named to 2021 NFL Pro Bowl". atlantafalcons.com. Retrieved May 3, 2022.
    97. "The golden friendship between the two first Asian American Olympic champions". NBC News. May 22, 2019. Archived from the original on January 23, 2020. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.