When we unite, we will bring real change. On June 25, 2022, step out and march with us in Washington, D.C. to advance equitable representation and rights for all of our communities.

The Unity March is an historic Asian American-led, BIPOC multiracial, intersectional mobilization that will feature a full program with speeches by impacted persons and community leaders. Together, we are telling a story of pan-racial power, unity, and resilience.

#UnityMarch2022 is organized and led by Asian Americans Advancing Justice - AAJC (Advancing Justice - AAJC), APIAVote, Gold House, Indian American Impact, National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA), OCA National Center, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF).

RSVP to join the movement and receive updates on our program here.

• Distract: Creating a distraction to de-escalate the situation;
• Delegate: Finding someone else to help;
• Document: Creating documentation of the incident and then giving it to the person who was harassed;
• Delay: Checking in on the person who experienced harassment;
• Direct: Setting a boundary with the person doing the harassing, and then turning your attention to the person being harassed.

The Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) is a broadband subsidy program administered by the FCC. Individuals and households may qualify to receive a monthly credit to offset the cost of broadband internet subscriptions.

"Programs like the ACP and in-language outreach efforts are critical to bridging the digital divide, especially in underserved #AANHPI communities that rely on internet connections to access essential services," said President and Executive Director John C. Yang.

Access our in-language factsheets, graphics, and resources on how to sign up here.

In April, Director of Telecommunications, Technology, and Media Emily Chi testified before the United States House of Representatives Committee on House Administration Subcommittee on Elections Hearing on “A Growing Threat: The Impact of Disinformation Targeted at Communities of Color."

In her testimony, Chi discussed how the lack of cultural nuance and community-specific messaging in mainstream efforts to combat mis/disinformation make Asian American communities uniquely vulnerable to certain harmful narratives.

Read her full written testimony here.

In April, our Mis/Disinformation Policy Analyst Jenny Liu was invited by Harvard Kennedy School’s Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Public Policy to present in their first-ever Misinformation and Conspiracy within Communities of Color Conference.

Jenny presented a case study on the unique vulnerability of Chinese Americans to targeted mis- and disinformation campaigns concerning topics such as "critical race theory" and affirmative action. Her talk focused on how bad actors exploit home country biases of first-generation Chinese Americans and common misconceptions around equity-driven education policies to sow division between this group and other communities of color.

On April 14, over 90 federal agencies released their first-ever Equity Action Plans, which listed concrete strategies and commitments to address systemic barriers in the nation’s policies and programs.

During the White House Convening on Equity, our President and Executive Director John C. Yang affirmed the importance of investing funding, building capacity, and nurturing trust to collect disaggregated data for addressing the needs of AANHPI communities.

Watch John's full speech here.

The 2021 signing of the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, which included the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act, sent a powerful message that communities targeted by hate must be centered and resourced to meet their needs.

On May 19, President and Executive Director John C. Yang joined The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights for their "Humanity Over Hate" forum alongside survivors of hate crimes and policy advocates. They discussed the impact of hate and provided action items for policymakers and the public.

Watch the full event livestream here and read our blog commemorating the one-year anniversary of the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act.

Civil rights organizations Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF), Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and the North Carolina Justice Center confirm support for race-conscious admissions and affirmative action in higher education as the opposition submits a brief to the U.S. Supreme Court today in SFFA v. Harvard University and SFFA v. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). The opposition’s brief is part of a concerted racialized attack on access to highly-selective institutions of higher learning.

"The opposition is using a small number of Asian Americans as a racial wedge to try to dismantle race-conscious admissions policies they were unable to do with white plaintiffs," President and Executive Director John C. Yang said.

Read our full statement of support here.

Advancing Justice – AAJC, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF), and LatinoJustice PRLDEF, together with law firm Arnold & Porter, submitted an amicus brief that successfully urged the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit to enjoin, at least temporarily, the order by U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and protect admission policies that remove barriers to educational opportunities for all students at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJ).

Read our full press release and amicus brief here.

Advancing Justice – AAJC and Advancing Justice – Los Angeles support the decision from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to end the use of Title 42 starting May 23, 2022, and reject efforts to preserve this immigration restriction.

Title 42 was first implemented by the CDC in March 2020 allowing border authorities to expel people seeking asylum under the pretext of public health necessity. The end of this disastrous policy was the result of the hard work and perseverance of many immigrant leaders and their communities. We call on the Biden Administration to live up to our domestic and international asylum obligations, and welcome asylum seekers with dignity.

Read our full statement here.

On May 3, we were deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Norman Y. Mineta, a titan in our country and a fierce protector of the Asian American community. President and Executive Director John C. Yang remembered Norm as someone who "never forgot a name" and who always made time for small, personal interactions.

"He never looked past you or looked over your shoulder to see if there was someone ‘more important’ that he should talk to. He was genuine and cared about people, regardless of politics. He will be missed.”

Read our full statement here.

On-going Resources

• "Be a Super Ally with the 5Ds" is a new 5Ds-for-kids video series was made in partnership with Advancing Justice - AAJC, Right To Be, and Woori Show. The videos were produced for kids ages 3 to 10 with the support of experts in language, culture, early childhood education, and child psychology. Watch the videos here.
   
• The Anti-Racial Profiling Project offers resources and legal referrals for those impacted by the U.S. government’s increased efforts to target and profile Asian American and Asian immigrant scientists and researchers, particularly of Chinese descent. If you believe you are being racially targeted by the government and you are looking for attorney referrals, please contact 202-935-6014 using the Signal app and a staff member will reach out to you directly with support available in English and Mandarin/普通话.
   
• Our community engagement team is working with community partners to develop state-specific and national anti-hate resources for the AAPI community. Individuals and organizations are encouraged to access, share, and add to the crowd-sourced document.

Advancing Justice - AAJC and Right To Be Workshops

We continue to host trainings with Right To Be and have now trained over 100,000 people to safely intervene as a bystander to stop non-violent incidents of anti-Asian hate since the beginning of our partnership in April 2020.

The Asian Americans Advancing Justice affiliation is proud to provide in-language Bystander Intervention Trainings for limited English proficient members of our community. We are hosting sessions with simultaneous translations in Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Hindi, Korean, Tagalog, Thai, and Vietnamese. Learn more and sign up.
 

• Learn about the basics of intervention and the spectrum of disrespect experienced by Asians/Asian Americans. Then, put what you have learned into practice. Register Here

• Take your intervention skills a step further by using patience, empathy, and a willingness to listen to directly de-escalate conflict with a harasser. Register Here

Asian American Education Project Teacher Workshops

• Manager, Census and Civic Engagement (“Manager”)
• Research Manager (Two-Year Fellowship)
• Manager, Immigration Advocacy
• Associate Manager, Donor Engagement