Justice in Brief: Strength in Solidarity

Policy and litigation updates from Advancing Justice - AAJC

View this email in your browser

Strength in Solidarity

As the end of the year approaches, our communities are empowered by solidarity as we continue united with our allies in the fight for a more equitable and inclusive future for all.

On October 31, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for two cases that will determine the future of affirmative action in college admissions. Advancing Justice - AAJC was proud to rally before the steps of the Court in fierce solidarity with our organizing partners, allies, and a diverse group of students and alumni from across the country in support of race-conscious admissions.

While decisions on the two court cases heard in October are not expected until next summer, that does not mean the work stops here. We will continue raising our voices in unity because affirmative action benefits everyone, including Asian Americans, and we know it is our best opportunity to ensure there is equity and diversity in education.

As our communities turned out to vote for the 2022 midterm elections, Advancing Justice - AAJC provided in-language election resources and live assistance through our multi-lingual voter hotline in partnership with APIAVote to help our community get vote ready and make sure their ballots are counted. Demonstrating that our voice continues to grow, we saw a 70% increase in calls compared to the 2018 midterm elections.

We continue to advocate for family immigration and push Congress to provide a pathway to citizenship for all. As the future of DACA lies in uncertainty, it is more important than ever to demand Congress deliver on citizenship this year for our Dreamers and immigrant communities. We also call for legislative solutions to protect family immigration by clearing visa backlogs that have kept families apart for years, even decades. Congress must act now so our communities and loved ones can be reunited and stay protected.

As 2022 comes to a close, we express our deepest gratitude to our supporters, partners, and allied communities for speaking out, taking action, and providing support to fight for our civil and human rights. Despite attempts to undermine and divide our communities, we continue to rise because in unity, there is power.

Below are highlights of our ongoing efforts and upcoming initiatives you can get involved with too!

EVENTS

Couldn't make it to our 2022 American Courage Awards? Watch the full live stream recording of the event here.

ADVANCING JUSTICE - AAJC IN THE NEWS

In an article for Inside Higher Ed, President and Executive Director John C. Yang discusses the Supreme Court hearings on affirmative action and refuted efforts by those who seek to divide our communities while emphasizing the importance of solidarity.

“Let’s make sure that our voices are heard,” he said. “We have 40 years of legal history on our side. Each time affirmative action has been challenged, it has been upheld. We intend to fight not only for race-conscious decisions we have now, but to envision a world and a path forward where we demand equity in our education.”

In an article by CNN that discusses how to navigate intimidation and other obstacles to voting ahead of the midterm elections, Advancing Justice - AAJC and APIAVote's multi-lingual voter hotline was featured as a resource.

In a recent press briefing with the Leadership Conference Education Fund, Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, and the Legal Defense Fund discussed the threats to the longstanding precedent of affirmative action in higher education.

President and Executive Director John C. Yang said: "The majority of Asian Americans have consistently supported affirmative action, which allows all students to share their whole story that is inclusive of their identities, histories, and lived experiences. We stand with our Black, Latino, Pacific Islander, and indigenous allies to protect race-conscious admissions so we can continue to break down systemic and racial barriers that have denied too many access to a quality education."

Call to Action: Tell Congress to Protect Family Immigration

We need your help to fill in this picture and so many others. How? Congress has the opportunity to clear immigration backlogs and protect family immigration in end-of-year negotiations going on right now, but the next couple weeks is their last chance to do so. Families are the cornerstone of American communities and help our country thrive. Join us alongside the Value Our Families campaign in calling on Members of Congress to pass these provisions on the table that would:

1) roll over visa numbers to the next year in visa categories
2) recapture unused family-sponsored and employment-based visas from 1992-2022
3) keep our country's promise to aspiring Americans who won diversity visas but could not enter due to the discriminatory Muslim and African bans & Covid-19 related bars on travel

Click HERE to take action today and spread the word on social media by using VOF's toolkit HERE.

(Photo Credit: United We Dream)

Call to Action: Demand Congress to Pass Citizenship This Year

Immigrant communities fought hard for DACA 10 years ago, and won! But now DACA is dying and our immigrant communities are counting on Congress to provide a pathway to citizenship this year. Congress still has time to deliver citizenship for Dreamers and for our immigrant communities. Take action now by writing a letter to your member of Congress and demand that they deliver on citizenship so all immigrant youth, our families, and our communities are protected.

Asian Americans Advancing Justice and API Organizations Denounce Anti-Chinese Political Rhetoric Used in Elections Against Asian American Political Candidates

The Advancing Justice affiliation and 33 AAPI organizations condemn the anti-Chinese, sinophobic political narrative many political candidates have been using in this midterm election cycle in an effort to sway voters. This xenophobic fear-mongering hurts Asian American communities that have already been facing 339% increase in anti-Asian racism and hate over the last year.

We urge all voters to look past these false claims that seek to mislead and manipulate the public for political gain.

Read the full press release here.

Asian American Civil Rights Voices: We Need Affirmative Action to Counter Systemic Racism in Education

Ahead of oral arguments before the Supreme Court in SFFA v. Harvard and SFFA v. University of North Carolina on October 31, Asian Americans Advancing Justice is calling on the court to affirm the constitutional right to affirmative action.

As we wrote in our amicus brief, abandoning race-conscious admissions will undo the progress that has been hard fought across generations, and impedes the changes we still need to make quality education a reality for all students, regardless of their wealth, their family connections, or their race and ethnicity.

We urge the court to uphold the constitutional right to affirmative action that has made education better for countless students, including Asian American students, for more than 40 years.

Read the full press release here.

Asian American Civil Rights Groups Applaud the Court Decision to Block Title 42, An Important Step in Restoring and Rebuilding Asylum at the Border

On November 16, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia vacated and ended the Title 42 policy, ruling that the government’s decision to implement the policy was “arbitrary and capricious” and not justified by the administration’s health-related rationale.

The Title 42 policy resulted in millions of expulsions of asylum seekers fleeing violence and persecution, supposedly in the name of public health.

We call on the Biden Administration to accept this decision to put an end to Title 42 once and for all and urge Congress to reject any future efforts to extend this failed program.

Read the full press release here.

(From left to right: Parkin Lee, Kathleen Kim, Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, Tarina Ahuja, and John C. Yang)

2022 American Courage Awards

On October 21, we held our first in-person American Courage Awards after two years of virtual events. It truly was a night to remember as many of us reunited to celebrate our honorees, including Senator Mazie Hirono with the American Courage Award; Kathleen Kim with the Changemaker Award; Parkin Lee with the President’s Award; and Tarina Ahuja with the inaugural Norman Y. Mineta Spirit Award.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our speakers and award presenters, our board of directors and national advisory council members, our sponsors, and all attendees for their support and commitment to our organization.

Couldn't make it to the event? Watch the full live stream recording here.

Blog Highlights

How to Protect Yourself? A Guide to Digital Security for Abortion/Health Care Privacy

Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC developed a resource guide in 12 languages on digital security for abortion access and health care privacy.

Building Unity From the Ground Up: Reflections From a Community Engagement Intern

Our Community Engagement Intern Laurie Chan shares her internship experience at Advancing Justice | AAJC, including helping to organize the first Asian-American led march on the National Mall, and how young people can get involved in advocacy.

Celebrating Diverse Asian American Leaders Serving Our Communities

Learn more about our honorees for the 2022 American Courage Awards, an annual signature event to recognize and celebrate trailblazers who have made extraordinary contributions to advancing civil and human rights.

The Next Generation of Leaders From Around the Country Come Together

Advancing Justice | AAJC announces our 11th Youth Leadership Summit cohort to join a multi-day leadership development program that focuses on advocacy, communications, and civic engagement around policy issues impacting our communities from college campuses to Capitol Hill.

Read more of our blogs!

Report Anti-Asian Hate, Harassment, and Violence

By sharing what you experienced or witnessed, you can educate the public, empower others, show service providers where help is needed, and strengthen advocacy efforts for hate crimes response and prevention. We know that sharing these experiences can be painful, which is why we are so grateful for the brave individuals who continue to trust us with their testimonials.

Stand Against Hatred was created by the Asian Americans Advancing Justice affiliation in January 2017 to capture information about the increase in hate we observed in the months before and following the 2016 election. Since COVID-19 began, however, we have received many new testimonials of anti-Asian/Asian American incidents of hate and harassment.

If you or someone you know would like to share your experience, please visit StandAgainstHatred.org today.

Meet Our New Staff

Rebecca Ma | Immigration Advocacy Manager

Rebecca Ma is the Immigration Advocacy Manager supporting the development and implementation of the organization's immigration policy priorities and advocacy strategies, particularly focusing on at-risk populations and civil and human rights. She previously worked as the Senior Campaigner with Amnesty International USA who led AIUSA's priority campaigns on refugee and migrant rights. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from American University School of International Service with a focus on Peace, Global Security and Conflict Resolution & Spanish Language and Americas Area Studies.

Dennis Jing | Staff Attorney, Anti-Profiling, Civil Rights & National Security

Dennis Jing is the Anti-Profiling, Civil Rights & National Security Staff Attorney working to combat racial profiling and harmful national security policies. He was previously a law fellow at a plaintiff-side employment firm working on equal employment opportunity (EEO) claims. Dennis received his J.D. from the George Washington University Law School and his B.A. from the University of Michigan.

Louise Liu | Anti-Hate Communications Coordinator

Louise Liu is the Anti-Hate Communications Coordinator responsible for supporting and implementing the organization's communications strategies in the area of racial justice, including anti-Asian hate. She was previously a Fulbright Scholar in Taiwan, where she taught English to public school students. Louise received her B.A. from Emory University, where she studied English and Psychology with a concentration on the literature of marginalized authors.

Join Our Team

We are looking to immediately hire full-time:

See all our open positions and learn how to apply here.

Give Today

Copyright © 2022 Asian Americans Advancing Justice - AAJC, All rights reserved.
You are receiving this email because you opted in at our website, donated to Advancing Justice - AAJC or attended an event.

Our mailing address is:
Asian Americans Advancing Justice - AAJC
1620 L Street N.W. Suite 1050
Washington, DC 20036

Receive this email from a friend? Be the first to know.
Make sure to sign up for our e-list to receive all our news.

unsubscribe from this list update subscription preferences