Posted on January 26, 2010 by asianlawcaucus
By Titi Liu
Is it just me, or is social justice, especially racial justice, feeling particularly hard to achieve right now? A year after the euphoria of the Obama inauguration, the reality sinks in. We are all in need of inspiration and some kind of road map. At Asian Law Caucus, we have been pushing hard on the strategic communications front. We are looking for new ways to change hearts and minds, as the media landscape seems to shift every day beneath our feet. We have been hearing from a lot of communications consultants about what resonates, what persuades, what actually gets inside someone’s mind and shifts their framework? Read more »
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Posted on November 23, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
Minutes after the San Francisco Board of Supervisors overrode Mayor Newsom’s veto of a practical policy to restore due process to undocumented youth, faith leaders and community members gathered for a ceremony to celebrate the passage and to urge the City to swiftly and effectively implement the policy change. At the gathering, Attorney Abigail Trillin read a statement on behalf of immigrant mother Maria (a pseudonym). The painful case of Maria’s 16-year old son, now facing deportation despite the DA’s decision not to file charges, highlights the urgent need to implement the reform.
Read more »
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Posted on November 7, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
By Veena Dubal, Staff Attorney, National Security and Civil Rights Program
Yesterday, was a difficult day for me.
I spent the morning “dialoguing” with a former Republican Senator, a conservative law professor, and the director of a non-profit that works against “big government” (among others) on issues of race in America. We debated everything for an educational television program: from the use of race in law enforcement to affirmative action.
During the course of this two hour program, I tried to maintain a countenance of civility while listening to a white man deploy narratives of “personal responsibility” while talking about black men and violence. After abstractly opining on “racism in America” for the taping, I walked back to our offices in Chinatown in the drizzly San Francisco rain and thought about my clients whose lives were plagued by the complexities and intersections of racism and imperialism. Read more »
Filed under: Asian American, Asian Law Caucus Staff, Politics, civil rights, current events | Tagged: 1st cavalry division, Affirmative Action, Arab, backlash, Fort Hood, george hennard, homegrown terrorism, Imperialism, killeen, Luby's cafetaria, muslim, Nidal Hassan, Race, racism, religious extremism, senseless violence, suicide bomber, Texas, violence | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 5, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
By Bradford G. Low
Photo courtesy of Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Bay Area
Who is magistrate judge Edward Chen? Reading John Diaz’s “The smearing of a loyal American” in Sunday’s Chronicle has guaranteed my continued patronage for San Francisco’s Sunday edition for at least another month and a half. The issues addressed by Mr. Diaz kindled my curiosity for U.S. magistrate Edward Chen. And as I sit here scouring the world wide web for more information about this dear friend to the Asian American community, I seem to have stumbled upon a different side of Mr. Chen. Read more »
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Posted on November 4, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
By Karin Wang
Originally posted on APAs for Progress. Photo courtesy of New America Media.
On November 4th, 2008, Proposition 8 passed in California, eliminating the right to marry for same-sex couples. One year later, the rights of the LGBT community are again up for a popular vote, in Maine, Washington and Michigan.
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As a straight ally in the fight for marriage equality, I am often asked why I work on the issue of marriage equality.
It was not something that I planned Read more »
Filed under: Asian American, Stand Up Speak Out!, civil rights, community organizing | Leave a Comment »
Posted on October 15, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
As husband to a first generation Thai American, I spent many Sundays at Wat Berkeley particularly in the recent and past years. Initially we didn’t know anybody. We would pray for a few minutes, and conversed with a few of the regular patrons. Gradually over time, we would be invited into the Sunday meals by the kind elders and inclusive community of people who warmly welcomed us with their stories, jokes, smiles and home cooked Thai food – food that my wife often said would remind her of her now distant home and culture, and thus would make her happy. Our relations with some grew closer and developed into friendships – on one occasion, I was taken out by Doug and Khun Padang Coffee on the occasion of my birthday after being blessed by the head monk at the Thai Temple. I was taken to a buffet near their home in Fairfield, California. Read more »
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Posted on October 12, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors will vote on Oct. 20th on a policy to restore due process to immigrant youth that is supported by over 35 civil rights, LGBT, workers rights, labor, youth, and immigrant organizations.
Come join youth, parents, and advocates on Oct. 20th at 2PM at City Hall, 2nd Floor. Watch this video for more information:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzcQ5wZgN-Q
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Posted on October 8, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
By Dionne Jirachaikitti
On September 22, 2009, the Berkeley City Council voted 9 to 0 in support of the Berkeley Thai Temple. The vote came as a relief to the Thai community in the Bay Area who had been waiting for over a year to know whether they would be able to continue their tradition of merit-making in Berkeley.
Read more »
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Posted on September 22, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
By: Karin Wang, Esq.
(Republished with permission from the author. This post was originally published here)
Under the nation’s first African American President and U.S. Attorney General, a much welcomed reinvigoration of our federal government’s commitment to civil rights is underway. As a civil rights advocate, I applaud the DOJ’s refocusing on civil rights and urge that the DOJ’s Civil Rights division, which was established in 1957 during the era of massive civil rights changes, reprioritize its original mission of fighting racial discrimination. Read more »
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Posted on September 3, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
This blog post is re-posted from here with permission from the author.
By Shahid Buttar
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Napolitano recently highlighted her department’s efforts to reach out to build “stronger relationships with Arab and Muslim Americans, as well as South Asian communities across the country,” seemingly reflecting an awareness of how the war on terror has stigmatized and cast irrational suspicion on these groups. Despite the best of intentions, however, Napolitano’s self-assurance is premature. DHS’s engagement of vulnerable communities emphasizes form over substance and, historically, has amounted to mere public relations.
Outreach efforts conducted by the Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL), for instance, have long fallen short of repeated requests from vulnerable communities. Just last month, a coalition of over a dozen civil rights organizations issued a letter (PDF) to Secretary Napolitano reiterating a series of substantive and structural concerns, while proposing concrete solutions to fulfill the new administration’s promise to pay greater respect Read more »
Filed under: Asian American, Politics, civil rights, community organizing | Tagged: arab americans, CBP, crcl, DHS, FBI, muslim americans, office of civil rights and civil liberties, secretary napolitano, shahid buttar, south asian community, TRIP | Leave a Comment »
Posted on September 1, 2009 by cpunongbayan
Posted by: Christopher Punongbayan
Dear America:
My name is Michael Tsui, and I’m 21 years old. I’m an undocumented student recently transferred to San Jose State University to study Computer Engineering. I want to talk to you about the DREAM Act, but before I do, I want to tell you about my story, about how I came to the United States. Read more »
Filed under: Asian American, Politics, Stand Up Speak Out!, current events | Tagged: Asian immigrant youth, Asian youth, DREAM, DREAM Act, immigrant rights, undocumented, youth | 1 Comment »
Posted on August 31, 2009 by asianlawcaucus
If you are in NYC in mid-September, you must attend this Constitution Day event that is being hosted by the Open Society Institute’s National Security and Human Rights Campaign. Daniel Ellsberg and John Dean will appear on stage together in New York City on the evening of September 15 for a conversation about the abuse of power by the executive branch in the name of national security. As courageous Nixon era whistleblowers, Read more »
Filed under: current events | Tagged: ACLU, ann beeson, daniel ellsberg, government secrecy, john dean, judith ehrlich, New York Society for Ethnical Culture, nixon, open society institute, open society institute's national security and human rights campaign, rick goldsmith, The Most Dangerous Man in America, vietnam war, whistleblowers | Leave a Comment »
By Titi Liu
Originally 
