020, the Asian American Pacific Islander Community Commission was revived to conduct a community report of the 20+ communities that encompass the Asian American and Pacific Islander Las Vegas communities.
This was due to the fast-paced growth of the Asian American and Pacific Islander Las Vegas community and an urgent need to have a better understanding of the social and economic needs of the growing community in Las Vegas.
The way previous national data was collected on demographics, households, and economics was a challenge since it was aggregated into one category, either “Asians” or “Native Hawaiians”.
For a long time, the impression of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders were thought to be well-off economically and was often viewed as part of the Model Minority Myth, but in reality, there were several AAPI ethnic communities struggling. The economic and social challenges were masked due to the inaccurate data representation of the Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders as one singular group in the Las Vegas community.
About the Commission
The Asian American Pacific Islanders Community Commission also known as AAPICC was formed in 2019 and completed its term in 2023.
In 1995, a bill was passed in the Nevada legislature called the “Asian Bill (Assembly Bill 525)” that called for the formation of a commission to study the Asian Pacific American (APA) community if the population exceeds over 400,000.
With the help of various Asian American and Pacific Islander non-profits, community groups, and religious institutions, a survey was conducted with the goal of understanding the 20+ community groups that encompass the “Asian American and Pacific Islander” community of Las Vegas.
These 20+ Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander community groups consisted of the following ethnicities: Afghan, Asian Indian, Bangladeshi, Bhutanese, Burmese, Cambodian, Chinese, Filipino, Hmong, Japanese, Korean, Laotian, Malaysian, Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander, Pakistani, Samoan, Sri Lankan, Taiwanese, Thai, and Vietnamese.
Survey Recommendations
Based on the survey results and census data, the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community Commission provided several recommendations to Clark County for the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander community:
- Create a Clark County handbook for the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Community
- This handbook provides an overview of various resources offered to the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander community.
- Formation of a Clark County AAPI Liaison Officer
- A formal position focused on engaging with all Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander communities with the goal of fostering positive relations with Clark County and to the local Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.
- Increase AAPI representation in the Clark County workforce
- Focus on diversifying Clark County’s workplace for better representation within the Las Vegas community.
- Opening of an AAPI cultural center
- The community survey conducted reported that 87% of respondents noted the importance of preserving various Asian American and Pacific islander cultures.
- The AAPI Cultural Center’s focus is to preserve and promote ethnic cultures and become the main location for a variety of cultural events, economic workshops, and community meetings.
Importance of Data Collection
The community survey conducted by the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community Commission represents a small portion of the Asian American and Pacific Islander community in Las Vegas. Due to concerns with how data is utilized or how it could negatively impact themselves, it is often hard to collect various ethnic data.
For many 2nd generation Asian American and Pacific Islander individuals who reside in the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, it is important to be aware of the social and economic challenges that could impact their communities. By taking the census or survey data authorized by the state government or local government, the data is used to help understand the challenges the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander community is facing.
This data is often used by local/state government agencies and lawmakers to introduce bills or funding to provide support for the Las Vegas Asian American and Pacific Islander community.
Become an OCA member
OCA Las Vegas is a membership-based non-profit Las Vegas community organization. Become an advocate for better data representation of the Las Vegas organization by getting involved with OCA. Check out our membership page to learn more. Our membership pricing starts at $10/year.