Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders have served with honor in every American conflict since the Revolutionary War. Several Filipino-Americans fought in the Battle of New Orleans during the War of 1812. In the American Civil War, soldiers on both sides of the conflict listed birthplaces in present-day China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand, as well as the Kingdom of Hawaii. When the United States entered World War I in 1917, several thousand Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Filipinos served in segregated units in the U.S. military. Yet when the stories of American conflicts are told and their veterans honored, Asian-American and Pacific Islanders are often left out of the conversation, their stories unheard.   

The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor in New Windsor is a New York State historic site under the jurisdiction of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission, and is devoted to telling the stories of all who received the Purple Heart. Its mission is to collect, preserve and share the stories of Purple Heart recipients from all branches of service and across all conflicts for which the award has been available. This is most visibly demonstrated by the Roll of Honor database of Purple Heart recipients, which can be viewed both at the Hall of Honor and online. There is no comprehensive list of Purple Heart recipients maintained by the government. The Roll of Honor is comprised of voluntary enrollments provided by the recipients, or their families or friends.  

In recognition of Asian-American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the Purple Heart Hall of Honor shared these stories of AAPI members in the Roll of Honor to recognize their service, courage, patriotism, and sacrifice.