Asian Fortune Your source for all things Asian American
By Michelle Phipps-Evans
Asian Fortune magazine’s column explores news, views and cues in the exciting political sphere. The column touches the three branches of the federal government, state-level political tidbits, little known historical facts, and on occasion, a dose of gossip.
APIAVote Joins Coalition to Protect Voting Rights
As November’s general elections approach, the organization Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote) recently joined a powerful coalition of organizations in support of Protect Voting, which is fighting for inclusive and easy voting in all 50 states. “We won’t stand for new legislation that makes it harder to vote—and sit idly by as millions of people are effectively silenced,” writes APIAVote executive director Christine Chen in a newsletter late August. APIAVote is a nonpartisan organization that mobilizes APIAs in electoral and civic participation. Recently, the courts upheld a decision that will burden voters with new voter laws. These efforts to block the vote include removing same-day registration, eliminating early registration for 16 and 17 year olds, shrinking early voting from 17 to 10 days, and requiring photo identification beginning in 2016. “We all know how important it is to elevate the voices of people of color and millennials,” she wrote. The millennial generation is considered to be one of the largest, most diverse generations, and states such as North Carolina are trying to keep them from finding their voices. For those who will like to add their voices, visit the following website: http://protectvoting.com/?source=APIAVote
Obama Names First Asian-American EEOC Chair
Jenny R. Yang was named as the new chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, becoming the first Asian American to lead the agency. President Barack Obama announced her elevation from vice chair on Sept. 2. Yang served as vice chair since April 2014. A longtime civil rights and employment lawyer, Yang was a partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC, and was a senior trial attorney with the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Employment Litigation Section from 1998 to 2003. The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. Yang said it was a “tremendous privilege and responsibility” to lead EEOC’s efforts at enforcing anti-discrimination laws and championing equal employment opportunity in workplaces across America. Her term on the EEOC expires July 1, 2017.
Oakland’s History-Making Mayor to Run for Re-Election
Oakland, Calif.’s Mayor Jean Quan filed papers late July 2014 to seek re-election to a second four-year term, saying, “Our city is rising overall.” She said she has developed momentum in improving Oakland’s economy, reducing its crime rate and would like to “finish the job.” Quan, a Democrat who previously served as the first Asian-American woman on Oakland’s City Council and its school board, became known as the first woman and the first Asian American to be elected mayor of Oakland. She is the first Chinese-American woman mayor of a major U.S. city. There are 16 candidates who have taken out papers to challenge her in the upcoming November elections. The best-known of the other candidates include city council members, and a former television commentator, the city auditor and a civil rights attorney. However, Quan, a 34-year Oakland resident, said she has dedicated her life to making government work for people by elevating the profile of Oakland to the world, bringing in new investment and supporting the growth of local businesses for a stronger economy and decrease unemployment and crime.
California’s Indian-American Attorney General Marries for the First Time
Kamala Harris, whom President Barack Obama called “by far the best-looking attorney general,” recently got married to lawyer Douglas Emhoff on Aug. 22. The marriage ceremony was presided by Harris’ sister, Maya Harris, a vice president of the Ford Foundation in New York. Born in Oakland, Calif., Harris, 49, is the daughter of an Indian mother, Dr. Shyamala Gopalan, a breast cancer specialist who emigrated from Chennai in 1960, and a Jamaican-American father, Stanford University economics professor Donald Harris. In keeping with the bride’s Hindi heritage, a flowered garland was placed around the groom’s neck and in keeping with the groom’s heritage, the ceremony ended with the breaking of a glass, it was reported. Harris is the first woman, the first African American and the first South Asian American to hold the office of Attorney General in the history of California. This was Harris’ first wedding, the groom’s second.
Allan Fung Moves Closer to Governor’s Mansion
Republican Allan Fung advanced to the general election in the governor’s race in Rhode Island, defeating businessman Ken Block, 55 to 45 percent. Fung is the mayor from Cranston and will face Democrat Gina M. Raimondo, the general treasurer, in the general election in November. Elected 2008, Fung became the first U.S. mayor of Chinese ancestry in Rhode Island and Providence Plantations. The current governor, Lincoln Chaffee, is not running for reelection.
Some Quick Asian-American Female Political Facts
Asian-American Women in Elective Office
According to the Center for American Women and Politics, Eagleton Institute of Politics, Rutgers University, the following holds true in the political sphere:
- Of the 99 women serving in the 113th Congress, 7 are Asian American.
- Of the 72 women serving in statewide elective executive offices, one is Asian American.
- Of the 1,789 women state legislators serving nationwide, 34 are Asian American.
- Of the 100 largest U.S. cities, one has an Asian-American woman mayor
For more information on total numbers and percentages of women serving in various levels of office, visit this link, http://www.cawp.rutgers.edu/fast_facts/levels_of_office/index.php
Little Known Historical Fact
Refugee Act of 1980
In 1980, the Refugee Act reformed the United States immigration law in defining “refugee,” reducing restrictions on entry, and admitted refugees on a systematic basis for humanitarian reasons. Primarily, Vietnamese, Cambodian and Laotian political refugees were all greatly affected by this act, which supported their immigration to the United States. The act was created to provide for the effective resettlement of refugees and to assist them to achieve economic self-sufficiency.
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