UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — In the short film “The Name,” a mother holds her newborn and imagines how the name given to her daughter will impact her life. According to the film’s website, the given names of many Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders carry deep history and significance, but bias, indifference and unintentional mistakes can lead to mispronunciation and misidentification.
This Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, panelists from Procter & Gamble and Penn State will host “What’s in a Name?” and discuss the creation of the video and the impact that a name can have on the sense of belonging in the community.
The livestream event, sponsored by Penn State Outreach and Online Education’s Office of Inclusion, Equity and Diversity and the Penn State Office of Educational Equity, will take place at 2 p.m. on May 12 and is open to the public. Register here.
Panelists for the event include:
- Yea Yun Chow, senior brand director at Procter & Gamble
- Youngeun Kim, an HR business partner and head of equality and inclusion at Procter & Gamble IT
- Nalini Krishnankutty, program manager of diversity, inclusion and belonging for Penn State Human Resources
- Janet Luong, senior brand director at Procter & Gamble
The discussion will be moderated by Clarabelle Lin, a first-generation Chinese American and executive director of online education strategy and business development for Penn State World Campus.
"Every name has a story since our names are such an important part of our identities. As both a member of the AAPI community and as a marketer, Procter & Gamble's film inspired me to bring this conversation to the Penn State community,” said Lin. “This topic is relatable to everyone and with even a little bit of effort, we can make a significant difference for our community."
Released last May by Procter & Gamble in honor of AAPI Heritage Month, the film looks at the importance of a name and how meaningful gestures — like pronunciation and understanding its meaning — can create a greater sense of belonging. The goal of the project was to spark a conversation about this prevalent issue in AAPI communities.