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Join Us at the 7th Annual Low-Income Immigrant Rights Conference, Dec. 6-8

Nicole Duran — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:58:00 GMT

Between our battle to make health-care reform as inclusive as possible and our efforts to build momentum toward long overdue immigration reform, 2009 has been nothing short of exhilarating for immigrants’ rights advocates.

And 2010 promises to require even more engagement from the field to promote and advance our common cause. Join AAJC Sunday-Tuesday at the 7th National Low-Income Immigrant Rights Conference so we can learn from each other, organize joint events and coordinate our advocacy agendas for the upcoming political and legal battles.

The schedule includes panels on health care and immigration and an address by Sen. Robert Menendez.

This year, AAJC is proudly serving as a co-convener of this conference.

Contact Magdalena Morales at 213-674-2816 or morales@nilc.org for more information.

These are historic times for immigrants’ rights. Don’t miss this opportunity to help build the movement!

30-Nov-09 11:58 AM

Commentary: When Considering Health-Care Reform, Do Not Exclude Legal Immigrants

Nicole Duran — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 15:00:00 GMT

By Alice Dong
For Northwest Asian Weekly

Though we are on the brink of historic change regarding our nation’s haphazard health care system, it is stunning that even these sweeping reforms continue those policies that exclude legal immigrants.

With a few exceptions, legal immigrants must live in the United States for a minimum of five years before they are eligible for Medicaid, and in many states, the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Given that more than 60 percent of Asian Americans are foreign-born and more than 17 percent are uninsured, this provision hits our community particularly hard.

This waiting period prevents many low-income, legal immigrants from obtaining quality health care. Without access to affordable health services, many of those in our community, including children, put off receiving care until the problem is so severe that expensive emergency services are their only option. While emergency rooms cannot turn away uninsured or indigent patients, the cost of treating them is transferred to those with health insurance.

Most proposals would make health care subsidies available to legal immigrants – a bare-minimum, given that they pay taxes. However, allowing them access to Medicaid and CHIP, instead of placing them in the insurance exchanges under consideration, will likely prove to be more cost-effective.

Moreover, parents of children enrolled in CHIP pay less out-of-pocket than they likely would in private-run insurance plans. Meanwhile, Medicaid provides low-income children with services better suited to their needs. With many legislators worrying about health care reform’s price tag, removing the five-year bar could lower costs.

Health care reform promises great innovation, but keeping in place a policy that perpetuates a more expensive health care system will only stifle real reform. Lifting the five-year waiting period will make for a healthier America.

We must tell Congress how important this provision is. ♦

Alice Dong is the health law policy staff attorney with the Asian American Justice Center in Washington, D.C.

12-Nov-09 10:00 AM

Wrap Up of First Annual Advancing Justice Conference

Nicole Duran — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:00:00 GMT

Untitled document

October 29-30, 2009 | The Center at Cathedral Plaza - Los Angeles, CA

Tom Perez, U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Promises a New Era of Enforcement at the Inaugural 2009 Advancing Justice Conference
SAVE THE DATE! 2010 Conference will be held in Washington, DC in June

Leaders of the host organizations and Tom Perez, U.S. Assistant Attorney General

During the keynote address last Friday, U.S. Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez pledged to the more than 400 participants assembled at the first annual Advancing Justice Conference that the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, under his leadership, would restore civil rights enforcement, by equally upholding all of the nation’s civil rights laws, and transform civil rights by ensuring that his division was responsive to the challenges facing diverse and emerging communities.

Perez spoke about the Justice Department’s duty to uphold all of our laws, instead of a piecemeal approach to civil rights enforcement. The crowd cheered enthusiastically as he told them, “The Civil Rights Department is now open for business!” Read more about his keynote address in the Los Angeles Times.

CONFERENCE VIDEOS AND PHOTOS:

Video recordings and photos of the keynote speech and other plenaries and select workshops will be posted on www.AdvancingJustice.org in the coming weeks.

WORKSHOP HIGHLIGHTS:

Perez’s speech capped off a morning session that featured a lively discussion about hate crimes prevention, a timely subject given the newly-enacted Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which expands the federal definition of a hate crime to include gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability. Other panels in the morning included a discussion by low-wage workers rights advocates organzing to overcome obstacles to fair wages, equal treatment, and safe and healthy working conditions for Asian and other immigrant workers.

Hate Crimes Prevention Low Wage Workers' Rights

Students, activists and other leaders also spent the morning gaining a skills-based understanding of community organizing, including defining power, identifying organizing models and building an issue campaign. Linda Trinh Võ, chairwoman of the Asian American Studies Department at the University of California, Irvine, moderated panelists Sefa Aina, director of Asian American Resource Center at Pomona College; Sophya Chum, program director of Khmer Girls in Action; and Arnold Lee, president of the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association of Southwestern Law School.

In the afternoon, Tuyet Le, executive director of the Asian American Institute, moderated a panel discussion about capacity building for small, community-based organizations. Such organizations face numerous challenges in good times, and even more so in difficult economic times. Board development was a main theme as panelists provided volunteer management tools to enable small organizations to grow. The panel included: Jury Candelario, director of the Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team; Deborah Ching, principal of the Nonprofit Consulting Group; and Preeti Kulkarni, a member of the Asian Pacific Americans’ for Progress board.

Capacity Building for Small Organizations Foundation Fundraising in Tough Times

Another capacity building workshop addressed foundation fundraising. Given the severe economic downturn that has affected fundraising for nonprofits, panelists discussed national, state, and local trends in how foundations are changing their giving to meet the increased needs in the nonprofit sector. Moderated by Stewart Kwoh, president and executive director of the Asian Pacific Asian Legal Center, the panel included Kafi Blumenfield, president and chief executive officer of the Liberty Hill Foundation; Cristina Regalado, vice president of programs at The California Wellness Foundation; and Cynthia Renfro, director of programs and evaluation at the Marguerite Casey Foundation.

Civil Rights At The Intersections Of Gender Identity, Sexuality, Immigration And Race

Also in the afternoon, Karin Wang, vice president of programs at APALC, moderated a discussion about civil rights at the intersections of gender identity, sexuality, immigration and race. The panel explored intersections between lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) struggles and the broader Asian American and Pacific Islander civil rights agenda, with a goal of promoting greater inclusion of LGBT issues by AAPI organizations and advocates. The panel discussed parallels between the efforts to ban marriage between same-sex partners and earlier laws prohibiting interracial marriage, the similar struggles of undocumented immigrants and transgender individuals, and efforts to address immigration issues of same-sex binational couples. Panelists included Ben De Guzman, co-director of programs at the National Queer API Alliance; Yongho Kim, civic participation coordinator at the Korean Resource Center; Hector Vargas, deputy director of education and public affairs at Lambda Legal; Doreena Wong, co-founder of the Asian/Pacific Islander Queer Women/Transgender Activists; and Shin-Ming Wong, attorney at the National Center for Lesbian Rights.

SAVE THE DATE! 2010 ADVANCING JUSTICE CONFERENCE IN WASHINGTON, DC IN JUNE

Tuyet Le, Karen Narasaki, Chris Punongbayan, and Stewart Kwoh at the closing ceremony.

At the closing ceremony, Karen K. Narasaki, president and executive director of the Asian American Justice Center, thanked everyone for making time to participate in the Advancing Justice Conference and invited everyone to Washington, DC, June 24 and 25, for next year’s conference. She noted, “We are coordinating with a number of AAPI organizations that will host concurrent events in the hope of creating a massive presence of AAPIs in the nation’s capital.”

We hope you will join us in Washington, DC for the second annual Advancing Justice Conference. Stay tuned for more information on our website. If you missed this year's Advancing Justice Conference, a recording of the keynote speech and other plenaries and select workshops will be posted on www.AdvancingJustice.org in the coming weeks.

Stay connected and get real-time updates by visiting our Facebook and Twitter.

The 2009 Advancing Justice Conference is a joint project of:

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6-Nov-09 9:00 PM

New AAJC Report Shows Asian Businesses Face Many Obstacles

Leticia Miranda — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 19:00:00 GMT

Leticia Miranda

Report Shows Asian Business Owners Really Do Face Discrimination

Oh yes, it’s true. A group of fancy researchers have now said it: Asians face race discrimination in government business contracts.

A UCLA study found that Asians get the fewest local, state and federal contracts through government minority business programs. The study, commissioned by the Asian American Justice Center, focuses on San Francisco, Chicago and Atlanta to get a picture of what happens in metropolitan areas and national trends. The researchers told the Northwest Asian Weekly that they also found that:

— Korean Americans have the highest self-employment rate among Asian Americans, but they still do not earn as much as their non-Latino white counterparts, even after controlling for education and other characteristics.
— Controlling for other factors, race still affects differences in self-employment rates, earnings potential, and incorporation rates.

— Racial discrimination has created a significant barrier for Asian Americans to enter social networks, where contracting deals often originate and close.

The issue of race discrimination against Asian business owners runs so deep that in 2003, they were excluded from Chicago’s Minority Business Enterprise program, run by the state of Illinois. The reason? There wasn’t enough evidence to conclude that Asian business contractors really do face racism. After a series of testimonies and quantitative data put together by advocacy groups and researchers, the program finally agreed that there really is racism against Asians. Shocker!

The study will be released in the next couple of weeks.

6-Nov-09 2:00 PM

Census Newsletter

Nicole Duran — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 14:22:59 GMT

Asian American Justice Center Census 2010 Campaign

About AAJC's Involvement

As an appointed member of the commerce secretary's 2010 Census Advisory Committee, and a member of the previous Decennial Census Advisory Committee, AAJC has been a major player in census policy and community outreach for more than a decade. Known for its acclaimed Census 2000 campaign, AAJC continues to push for a fairer and more accurate count of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs).

National Collaborative Census 2010 Campaign

AAJC is a national partner of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund’s national collaborative campaign to educate the nation about the importance of a fair and accurate 2010 Census. The National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO), the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and the NAACP are also national partners. Among other activities, the national campaign will conduct grassroots mobilization of community leaders around the importance of the census through outreach, dissemination of materials, and thirteen regional train-the-trainers briefings across the country which will identify and train proven local leaders, who will then provide materials, support, and assistance to other local entities in ways that are specific and appropriate to their community.

Asian-focused Census 2010 Campaign

As a complement to the broader campaign, AAJC has its own initiative focused on the Asian American community. In July, AAJC’s Census Web site was launched. www.asianamericancensus.org/census-2010/ provides general information, discusses why the census is important to Asian Americans, and highlights the efforts of community-based organizations across the nation to promote Asian American participation. AAJC’s aggressive, nationwide initiative includes traditional, ethnic and blogosphere media outreach, community education and social networking. AAJC will translate many of its materials, such as factsheets and toolkits, into several languages.

Local Component

AAJC is also partnering with local groups to ensure that outreach and educational efforts are conducted at all levels to maximize the number of Asian Americans we can reach through materials dissemination, workshops, and trainings and with technical assistance:

Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California in Los Angeles
Asian American Institute in Chicago
Asian American Federation in New York
Asian Pacific Islander Community Leadership Foundation in Seattle
Boat People SOS in Houston
Center for Pan Asian Community Services, Inc., in Atlanta
Hmong American Partnership in St. Paul, Minn.
Mary Queen of Vietnam Community Development Corporation in New Orleans

Materials & Resources

Census Webinar: How to Approach Media on Census 2010

On Oct. 16, AAJC conducted a Webinar training with its local partners that provided them with valuable tools to help them educate our communities about Census 2010. They learned how to craft effective messages and talk to the media, including tips on television and radio interviews, and engaging ethnic media. The Census Webinar is available for download at: www.asianamericancensus.org/census-2010-media-center/.

AAJC Census 2010 Facebook Page: Asian Americans: It’s Time! Make Yourself Count!

Become a fan of our Facebook Page, Asian Americans: It’s Time! Make Yourself Count”! Join us and stay up-to-date on census news and efforts around the country by Asian Americans to ensure an accurate count in 2010.

www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/Asian-Americans-Its-Time-Make-Yourself-Count/161891303692?ref=ts

Keep checking back – there are more materials and tools to come!!!

Please visit our website, www.asianamericancensus.org/census-2010/ for more information.

29-Oct-09 10:22 AM

Advancing Justice Conference

Nicole Duran — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:09:19 GMT

22-Oct-09 11:09 AM

Survey on Adult English Language Learning

Pang Houa Moua — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 19:00:00 GMT

Untitled Document

Please distribute this invitation widely!

Please help us push for more and better adult English language learning (ELL) opportunities by filling out this survey!

Everyone who works with adult ELL programs (otherwise known as ESL or ESOL) is invited to participate in this survey. This includes teachers, administrators, advocates, volunteers, researchers, supervisors, and everyone else who works to make sure that adults in the U.S. have the opportunity to learn the English language.

This survey will guide work to strengthen ELL throughout the United States, and with people from all backgrounds – from Mexico, to Cambodia, Poland, Ethiopia, and everywhere in between, as well as people who were born in the U.S. The Asian American Justice Center (AAJC) is implementing this survey, in cooperation with Daylight Consulting Group.

By completing this survey you are helping us to support more and better adult English language learning programs, which are bound to become even more important as Congress moves towards Comprehensive Immigration Reform (perhaps in 2010) and the immigrant population continues to grow.

Completing the survey will take approximately 15 minutes of your time.

The deadline for completing the survey is Oct. 31, 2009.

Link to the survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=NUWp3ULMuQLB_2f39z6S6Tww_3d_3d

http://tinyurl.com/ygjwaga

This survey is being distributed by the following national organizations (partial list):

Asian American Justice Center (AAJC)

Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL)

National Council of La Raza (NCLR)

14-Oct-09 3:00 PM

Narasaki Named to 100 Most Powerful Women List

Nicole Duran — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 17:46:47 GMT

Untitled Document

AAJC’s Narasaki Named to Most Powerful List

Narasaki Again One of Washingtonian Magazine’s 100 Most Powerful Washington Women

WASHINGTON — AAJC President and Executive Director Karen K. Narasaki is one of the 100 women Washingtonian Magazine celebrates today as the most powerful women in Washington, an honor Narasaki has now earned four times.

This year she joins such insiders as Obama confidant Valerie Jarrett, senior advisor to the president, fellow advocate Janet Murguía, president of the National Council of La Raza, and National Public Radio veteran Nina Totenberg.

In naming this year’s list, Washingtonian said: “In almost every part of the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, there’s a deep bench of smart, savvy women who could each be considered one of the top 100. This year we’ve chosen to recognize those who make things happen in hometown Washington as well as the nation’s capital.”

In addition to her positions with the Asian American Justice Center, Ms. Narasaki is vice chairwoman of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, the nation’s oldest and broadest civil rights coalition. She heads the Rights Working Group, a coalition of human rights, civil rights, civil liberties and immigrant rights groups. And is also a member of the Federal Communications Commission’s Advisory Committee on Diversity for Communications in the Digital Age.

As chairwoman of the Asian Pacific American Media Coalition, Ms. Narasaki is a widely renowned leader in the Asian American community who also is a nationally respected expert on immigrant rights, voting rights, affirmative action and civil rights issues.

# # #

The Asian American Justice Center (www.advancingequality.org) is a national organization dedicated to defending and advancing the civil and human rights of Asian Americans. It works closely with three affiliates – the Asian American Institute of Chicago (www.aaichicago.org), the Asian Law Caucus (www.asianlawcaucus.org) in San Francisco, and the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (www.apalc.org) in Los Angeles – and 102 community partners in 47 cities and 25 states in the country.

9-Oct-09 1:46 PM

Building Bridges

Aarathi Haig — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 15:00:00 GMT

BUILDING BRIDGES: An Asian American Business and Contracting Leadership Summit

Written by Annie Guo | 16 September 2009

BUILDING BRIDGES: An Asian American Business and Contracting Leadership Summit by Annie Guo

Aarathi D. Haig, Staff Attorney at Asian
American Justice Center

The Asian American Justice Center (AAJC) and the U.S. Department of Interior Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will host an exclusive gathering of Denver Asian American business leaders, BLM officials, BLM prime contractors and other advocates of minority business development.

AAJC is a non-profit civil rights organization dedicated to the advancement of Asian Pacific Americans (APA) through federal policy. AAJC Staff Attorney, Aarathi D. Haig says, “While progress has been made, racial and ethnic discrimination is still a serious problem for APA business owners.”

The objectives of the event are to: highlight the capabilities and skills of the Denver-area APA business community to BLM and its large prime contractors; learn about BLM’s efforts to reach out to the Asian American business community in the Denver area; and discuss the importance of preserving, reinstating and increasing federal government minority contracting programs, and the inclusion of Asian Americans in these programs.

“Many people think we live in post-racial America,” Haig says. “The problem is that for a number of reasons, we [APAs] tend not to speak out as much as the other groups.”

Many Asian and minority companies might not be in a position to bid on the huge prime contracts but they could start as subcontractors. BLM wants these companies to be more proactive to reach out to APA communities.

“It’s so refreshing that a department in the government is reaching out to the APA community,” says Haig. “I almost jumped out of my chair because that never happens.”

The event is limited to an invitation-only group of people in order to enhance in-depth discussion and to dig deep into issues within the APA community.

Haig says, “For the contractors, this isn’t just about diversity and feeling good. It’s about increasing business! You should always be out there seeing how you can get your work done, faster and cheaper.”

“We want the APA community to have the chance to say, look my company is really qualified, but how do I get through this whole process of actually getting a contract.”

The event is co-hosted by Asian American Chamber of Commerce, Byte Technology, Inc. and the Colorado Office of Economic Development State Minority Business Office.

21-Sep-09 11:00 AM

Congressional Democrats Hosted the 4th Annual Asian American & Pacific Islander Summit

Hannah Stone — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:00:00 GMT

On June 3, 2009, Congressional Democrats hosted the 2009 Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Summit. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, Chairwoman of the Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee Debbie Stabenow, Chairman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) Michael Honda, and Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus John Larson were joined by their colleagues in both chambers to meet with members of the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. The theme of the summit was Restoring Our Economy: Recovery and Reinvestment in the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community.

28-Aug-09 11:00 AM

USA Rise Up on Sen. Kennedy

Nicole Duran — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:00:00 GMT

Senator Ted Kennedy Fought To Achieve The Greatest Good Across Race and Class

By JANICE S. ELLIS

Senator Ted Kennedy certainly epitomized Aristotle’s “Man of Practical Wisdom” when it came to fulfilling Plato’s vision of what government should be about, “seeking the greatest good for the greatest number.”

That was Ted Kennedy’s public life.

He spent his life working for and passing public policies that benefited his fellow citizens—an accomplishment that exceeded that of any other Senator in U.S. history and more than most presidents of the United States.

His passion and compassion, power and prowess, prudence and patience were applied in great measure as he fought to guarantee equality for everyone irrespective of race and socio-economic class, which resulted in the passage of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. His work did not stop there. He worked to pass the Voting Rights Act and Immigration Act in 1965, the Refugee Act in 1980 and many others.

Throughout his career of public service, he fought for other critical far-reaching issues, among them educational equality, and of course his life-long fight for health care reform.

Many organizations whose work has been for the disenfranchised, the poor and often forgotten know in a poignant way that they lost a champion today. It was expressed in statements issues by organizations like the National Urban League, www.nul.org , the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, www.civilrights.org, the Asian American Justice Center at www.advancingequality.org and America’s Voice at www.americasvoiceonline.org.

Karen K. Narasaki, president and executive director of the Asian American Justice Center, perhaps said it best in a statement she issued on the passing of Sen. Kennedy:

“Sen. Kennedy was the Senate’s extraordinary advocate for equality. He believed in, and fought doggedly to protect, the civil rights of all Americans. The immigrant community is especially grateful for his years of service and commitment, and for being one if its staunchest advocates.

Asian Americans in particular honor him for his work in 1965 when he led, and won, the battle to pass that year’s Immigration Act, which lifted the 1924 racial restrictions on immigration from Asia and abolished immigration quotas. He led the fight for the Refugee Act of 1980, which ensured humanitarian protections for refugees in overseas camps or seeking asylum. The Asian American community would not be as large or as diverse as it is today without his championing of immigrants and refugees.

From the seminal Civil Rights Act of 1964 that attacked segregation, to the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that sought to eliminate minority discrimination in voting, to the 1968 Fair Housing and Bilingual Education acts, Kennedy was an indispensable figure in ensuring that minorities truly be treated as full citizens.

More recently, he was the chief sponsor of the Civil Rights Act of 1991 and was integral to the 2006 reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act. Even while he was battling brain cancer, he never stopped fighting for others. Earlier this year, Kennedy was key to passage of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which restored the right of employees to challenge wage discrimination and which was the first law President Obama signed. He was in the middle of trying to get long sought hate crimes legislation and immigration reform enacted. Lastly, we are saddened by his absence from the health care reform debate, a cause that he took up early in his career and never dropped.

…We mourn the passing of this courageous and compassionate champion who was a legend long before today.”

Even with the passage of these major pieces of legislation, they only represent a portion of Kennedy’s life’s work.

Had Senator Kennedy lived, there is no doubt he would have worked until we achieved meaningful healthcare reform and immigration reform—two of the most important, far-reaching and contentious issues facing the nation today.

How can we best honor such a public servant’s work and legacy? As Vice President Joe Biden expressed in his remarked today, like Senator Kennedy, we must never become cynical about what we as Americans can achieve if we work hard and unselfishly to achieve it.

Oh if current and future leaders could be so inspired by Ted Kennedy the public servant, America could surpass any greatness already achieved.

As Senator Kennedy once said, “There is no safety in hiding.” I might add, “… and doing nothing.”

About author: Janice S. Ellis is the Publisher & Executive Editor of USARiseUp.

http://www.usariseup.com/riseup/publishers-note/62-senator-ted-kennedy-fought-to-achieve-the-greatest-good-across-race-and-class.html

27-Aug-09 10:00 AM

AAJC Op-Ed on API Week of Action

Karen Narasaki — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 18:00:00 GMT

APIs Organize First-Ever National Action Week

Immigration Matters

New America Media, Commentary, Karen Narasaki, Posted: Aug 21, 2009

This week, the Asian-American community is putting its newly cemented political power to use as we mobilize for the first ever national week of action in support of comprehensive immigration reform. Many in our community are banding together to attend town hall meetings with members of Congress, hold press conferences and petition lawmakers to fix our broken immigration system. The system restricts due process rights, breaks up families, and ultimately hurts the economy.

New data from the Census Bureau reveals a significant increase in the number of Asian voters over the last four years. And this week further proves that our community is willing to use its clout to spur action on immigration reform.

There are more than 15 million Asian Americans residing in the United States—the majority of whom are foreign born and, thus, have first-hand experience dealing with our woefully outdated immigration system. Countless Asians are caught in the family visa backlogs and remain separated from close family members. There are more than 1.2 million undocumented Asians in the United States today.

If members of Congress like being members of Congress, they’ll listen. According to the Census Bureau, the number of Asian voters in the United States increased 21.3 percent from 2.8 million voters in 2004 to 3.4 million in 2008. And our votes matter. Political candidates should pay particular attention to the rapid rise of Asian voters in many states, including electorally key—and often pivotal—states such as California, Virginia, Arizona, Colorado, and Ohio. California is home to more than one-third of all Asians in the United States.

In North Carolina, which went from “red” to “blue” in 2008, the number of Asian voters was three times greater than President Obama’s margin of victory over Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

The Asian-American community is also critical to our national economy. The purchasing power of Asians totaled $509.1 billion nationally in 2008, an increase of 337 percent since 1990, and is projected to reach $752.3 billion by 2013. Asians also own 1.1 million businesses in the U.S., which generated $326.7 billion in sales and receipts and employed roughly 2.2 million people in 2002.

There is no denying that Asian Americans contribute significantly to the political and economic landscape, but the question remains whether Congress will listen. Will Congress listen as the community mobilizes and demands comprehensive immigration reform? Or will they maintain the status quo and risk losing our support at the ballot box next year?

Karen Narasaki is the executive director and president of the Asian American Justice Center (www.advancingequality.org), a national organization dedicated to defending and advancing the civil and human rights of Asian Americans.

21-Aug-09 2:00 PM

TAKE 10 SECONDS TODAY TO SUPPORT IMMIGRATION REFORM USING YOUR CELL PHONES!!

Vincent Eng — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 15:08:10 GMT

For Immediate Release Contact: Meredith Higashi
Aug. 20, 2009 202-296-2300 ext.140

ACTION ALERT

TAKE 10 SECONDS TODAY TO SUPPORT IMMIGRATION REFORM USING YOUR CELL PHONES!!

We need your help TODAY to show that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are invested in and will take action to pass immigration reform this year! Across the country, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) will flex their political muscle during the National Week of Action (Aug. 17-24) to show that we want fair and humane immigration reform NOW.

Support the National Asian American Week of Action through one easy step:

Text "AAPI" to 69866

TODAY - THURSDAY, AUG. 20th

You will be asked to reply with your zip-code and email to become a part of the national Reform Immigration for America campaign's Cell Phone Action Network. As a part of the network, you will receive periodic text messages on the latest news and action opportunities around immigration reform, specific to your state or local community.

With more than 1.2 million AAPIs who are undocumented and need to be legalized, more than 2 million waiting abroad to join close family members through the family-based immigration system, and the ongoing detention and deportation of community members, AAPIs have a huge stake in having comprehensive immigration reform legislation passed and enacted.

Text "AAPI" to 69866

(All standard texting fees apply.)

Together we can achieve the comprehensive immigration reform that our communities need!

The national groups that are partnering to host the National Asian American Week of Action are: Asian American Justice Center, Asian Pacific American Legal Center, Asian Law Caucus, Asian American Institute, OCA-Embracing the Hopes and Aspirations of Asian Pacific Americans, Japanese American Citizens League, South Asian Americans Leading Together, National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum, Hmong National Development, Kaya, and the National Federation of Filipino American Associations.

Stay up to date with our RSS feeds.

20-Aug-09 11:08 AM

AAJC August E-Newsletter

Hannah Stone — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 15:00:00 GMT

In This Issue:

Obama Nominates Dolly Gee and Edward Chen to Federal Bench
Senate Confirms Sotomayor
AAJC White House Reception
Obama Nominates Judge Jacqueline Nguyen to Federal Bench
Asian American Week of Action Aug. 17-24
Bill Promoting More English Language Courses Introduced in Congress
AAJC’s Dong in the Northwest Asian Weekly
AAJC Launches Census Web site
Ugly Betty’s Alec Mapa to Emcee American Courage Awards
Join Us for the Advancing Justice Conference Oct. 29-30
Stay in the Know on AAJC’s Work
AAJC Needs Your Support

Obama Nominates Dolly Gee and Edward Chen to Federal Bench

On Friday, Aug. 7, President Obama nominated Dolly M. Gee to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and Judge Edward M. Chen to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

If confirmed, Gee would be the first Asian Pacific American female judge to serve on the District Court of the Central District of California and Chen would become the first Asian Pacific American federal district court judge in the San Francisco area.

“We are proud to have recommended Ms. Gee and Judge Chen for these seats and to have worked with the Obama administration, the White House counsel’s office, and Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) in supporting them and many other talented Asian Pacific American lawyers highly qualified to serve on the federal bench,” said Karen Narasaki, president and executive director of the Asian American Justice Center.

These nominations would greatly increase racial and gender diversity in the federal judiciary. Of the over 850 active Article III judgeships nationwide, less than 1 percent are filled by Asian Pacific American judges. Of these eight, only two are women.

Since 1986, Gee has been Partner at Schwartz, Steinsapir, Dohrmann & Sommers, where she specializes in labor and employment law. She also serves on the board of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, AAJC’s affiliate in Los Angeles. For the past eight years, Chen has served as a federal magistrate judge for the Northern District of California. He was part of the legal team that overturned the more than 40-year-old conviction of Fred Korematsu in a coram nobis case.

Senate Confirms Sotomayor

The U.S. Senate made history Thursday, Aug. 6 when, by a vote of 68-31, it confirmed Justice Sonia Sotomayor as the first Latina member of the Supreme Court.

Karen K. Narasaki, president and executive director of the Asian American Justice Center, praised the action in a statement immediately following the vote.

“We applaud President Obama for his commitment to making our federal courts more reflective of America in the 21^st century by tapping the most highly talented in all of our communities,” she said. “We look forward to working with him on the confirmation of the Honorable Jacqueline Nguyen to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the first Vietnamese American to be appointed to a federal district court.

“We believe that Justice Sotomayor’s confirmation further opens the doors to the courts for women and minorities, and we look forward to one day seeing the nominations of the best and the brightest of the Asian American community to the Supreme Court.”

AAJC White House Reception

On Tuesday, Aug. 4, the Asian American Justice Center hosted a reception for Kalpen Modi, associate director in the White House Office of Public Engagement, at the Old Executive Office Building, adjacent to the White House.

Beforehand Modi, who is Obama’s official liaison to the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, had a “productive” meeting with the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, reported Karen K. Narasaki, president and executive director of the Asian American Justice Center.

Modi, better known as actor Kal Penn who left the TV show “House” to join the Obama Administration, was the star attraction, but several other prominent Asian American officials attended too. Tina Tchen, Modi’s boss and director of the White House Office of Public Liaison, spoke briefly to the AAJC members, staff and friends who filled the ornate Indian Treaty Room.

Numerous other prominent Asian American and Pacific Islander administration officials showed their support by either attending in person, or sending a representative. Among them were: Cabinet Secretary Chris Lu, who is also the assistant to the president; Preeta Bansal, the Office of Management and Budget’s general counsel; Marisa Chun, deputy associate attorney general; Ivan Fong, from the Homeland Security Department; Chris Kang, from the White House’s legislative affair’s office; Jacinta Ma Chuang, a senior policy advisor to the first lady; Sunil Mansukhani, a senior counsel in the Civil Rights Office; Williard K. Tom, the Federal Trade Commission’s general counsel; and Victoria Tung, from the Commerce Department’s legislative affairs office.

Obama Nominates Judge Jacqueline Nguyen to Federal Bench

President Obama nominated Judge Jacqueline Nguyen to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California July 31. If confirmed, she would be the nation’s first-ever Vietnamese American to serve as an Article III judge.

“We are very excited at the significant number of Asian Pacific American attorneys who, like Judge Nguyen, are extremely well qualified to be nominated to federal judgeships,” said Karen K. Narasaki, president and executive director of the Asian American Justice Center. “We believe the president is committed to improving the diversity reflected in the judiciary.”

Nguyen’s courageous life story epitomizes the American Dream,” Narasaki added. Nguyen has been a Los Angeles Superior Court judge for seven years. Prior to that, she spent six years as an assistant United States Attorney with the Criminal Division, and ultimately as the deputy chief of the General Crimes Section.

As a child, she escaped the fall of South Vietnam with her family through a harrowing trip, starting with a plane ride that temporarily separated her from her father, through chaotic Saigon, to the Philippines, to Guam, and eventually, to Camp Pendleton near San Diego. Eventually, she earned a scholarship to Occidental College before attending the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law, continuing all the while to help her mother in the family donut shop on the weekends.

Asian American Week of Action Aug. 17-24

Hundreds of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders will spend the week of Aug. 17-24 attending town hall meetings, sending postcards to Congress and visiting lawmakers, all in an effort to persuade Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform legislation this year.

The effort will begin Aug. 14 in Boston and continue into September. People will share their personal stories about how our outdated immigration policies adversely affect their families, businesses and communities.

Town hall meetings will be held in Chicago and New Jersey while activists in Los Angeles will hold a press conference. Anyone concerned about immigration policy is encouraged to submit letters to the editor, write a member of Congress, or participate in the post card campaign.

That campaign will focus specifically on the need to reform the family immigration system as part of the broader immigration overhaul.

The Asian American Justice Center will also release a brochure to help people explain why the issue is so critical that will be available in Chinese, Hindi, Korean and Vietnamese in addition to English.

Bill Promoting More English Language Courses Introduced in Congress

Rep. Mike Honda (D-Calif.) introduced legislation that would provide more funding for English and civics courses for non-English speakers last month.

The legislation would boost funding to local schools overwhelmed by the demand for English classes geared toward non-native speakers in their communities.

Nationally, one in three Asian Americans speaks limited English, and one in four Asian American households are linguistically isolated, meaning that anyone older than 14 living in those homes speaks limited English.

“The reality is that there are not enough classes and high-quality programs to meet the tremendous need for English language programs,” said Pang Houa Moua, director of community education and outreach for the Asian American Justice Center. “We need to remove these barriers so that Asian Americans and other immigrant families can receive the language skills training they need.”

AAJC’s Dong in the Northwest Asian Weekly

Alice Dong, a staff attorney with the Asian American Justice Center, published an Op-Ed about health care last week in the Northwest Asian Weekly.

Dong used her expertise in health policy and law to stress the access problems many Asian Americans encounter when seeking quality, affordable health care.

To read the article, please visit: http://www.advancingequality.org/en/art/15.

AAJC Launches Census Web site

Last month, the Asian American Justice Center launched a special 2010 census Web site to educate Asian Americans, and all minorities, about how important an accurate census is.

AAJC hopes community leaders, and anyone with an interest in the issue, look to the new site, which can be found at http://www.advancingequality.org/census-2010, for fact sheets, letters to the editor, blog posts and other tools that anyone can use to spread the word about the April 1, 2010 census.

Because many immigrants and other minorities are afraid to fill out census forms, they are routinely undercounted. Asian Americans comprise one the most undercounted groups. Cultural and linguistic barriers often prevent them from filling out the short questionnaire.

The undercount hurts Asian American, and other minority communities, because census data is used for everything from awarding representation in Congress, to determining federal funding for local communities, to providing statistics about American society.

Through an aggressive nationwide marketing campaign that includes mainstream, ethnic and electronic media outreach, community education, viral campaigning and social networking, AAJC hopes to educate Asian Americans about the need to be counted.

Ugly Betty’s Alec Mapa to Emcee American Courage Awards

Actor, comedian and playwright Alec Mapa will host the Asian American Justice Center’s America Courage Awards Thursday, Aug. 4 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

From 6-8:30 p.m. Mapa will humor attendees of the 13^th annual Courage Awards with the antics and wit that have earned him a following as Suzuki St. Pierre, a snarky TV fashion show host, “Ugly Betty.”

He also had a recurring role on the TV show “Desperate Housewives,” and was the star of an award-winning one-man play about the trials of trying to make it in Hollywood.

Tickets and sponsorship opportunities are still available. Please visit: http://www.advancingequality.org/american_courage_awards or call (202) 296-2300, ext. 138.

Join Us for the Advancing Justice Conference Oct. 29-30

The Asian American Justice Center and its affiliates—the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, the Asian Law Caucus and the Asian American Institute—are hosting the 2009 Advancing Justice Conference in Los Angeles, Calif. The annual conference, which will focus on civil rights and social justice issues that impact the diverse Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, will be held Oct. 29-30 at The Center at Cathedral Plaza in downtown Los Angeles.

Attendees to the conference will not only have the opportunity to network with fellow attendees in one of the largest Asian American communities in the country, but also get the latest information on legislative policy, Census 2010, immigration reform, hate crimes, health care access, English language acquisition and so much more.

Don't miss out on this opportunity to attend cutting-edge workshops, connect with key social justice leaders and hear from nationally renowned civil rights speakers. For more information on the conference, visit http://advancingjustice.org/.

Stay in the Know on AAJC’s Work

Visit the AAJC Web site at www.advancingequality.org to keep up-to-date on policy initiatives, action alerts and learn about upcoming events. Also, our spring quarterly 2009 newsletter is available on our site. Read the new issue by clicking here.

AAJC Needs Your Support

With your support, AAJC can continue to play a critical role on issues such as immigration, minority contracting, voting, census, civil liberties, hate crimes, television diversity and other issues of particular concern to the Asian American community. We hope you will take a moment to consider becoming a supporter of AAJC with a gift of any amount. Please donate by clicking on the following link: https://secure.entango.com/donate/zK4pQikLJds.

You can also send a donation in by check made payable to the Asian American Justice Center at 1140 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, D.C. 20036. If you would like to make a gift of stock, please contact June A. Jimenez, director of development, at (202) 296-2300 x138 or via e-mail at jjimenez@advancingequality.org.

13-Aug-09 11:00 AM

Commentary: Asian Americans must demand reform in their healthcare

Nicole Duran — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 16:00:00 GMT

By Alice Dong
For Northwest Asian Weekly

Aug. 6, 2009

The Asian American community has long borne the “model minority” myth which has contributed to concealing the major health concerns that face members of this community.

There is currently a lack of access to linguistically and culturally competent care. Rising costs create major barriers to effective, quality health care. These barriers contribute to and exacerbate health conditions such as Hepatitis B, obesity in youth, and mental illness that already have a disproportionate effect on the Asian American population.

Congress is currently debating the most significant reform for health care. There will be no better time than now to address the barriers that persist in health care for Asian Americans and other underserved communities. For an effective reform, health care legislation must address vital problems of these communities.

With few exceptions, legal immigrants must reside in the United States for five years before they are eligible for Medicaid. Moreover, immigrant children and pregnant women who are lawfully residing in this country must endure the same delay in states whose Children’s Health Insurance Program continues to impose this waiting period.

This vulnerable community critically needs access to affordable health care. Legislation eliminating the five-year bar will not only benefit this community of soon-to-be Americans, but also increase the efficiency of our health care system as a whole.

The Asian American community also faces barriers to quality health care due to its cultural diversity and limited English proficiency population.

Health reform must provide affordable and timely access to language services and culturally competent care. As a result, patients can be comfortable seeking medical care and, once in the doctor’s office, can understand medical instructions.

Workforce training for cultural competency and greater workforce diversity in the healthcare industry, paired with the provision of language services, would significantly advance the Asian American community’s access to effective health care.

For Asian Americans to receive the most appropriate health care, health data collection efforts must recognize that numerous ethnic groups with distinct characteristics comprise the Asian American population.

Many collection efforts, however, group all Asian Americans together, along with Pacific Islanders. Oftentimes, health data reports completely omit these communities. Lack of reporting or combining these communities into one conceals serious health issues affecting certain Asian ethnicities.

To ensure that the diverse members of the Asian American community receive health care that adequately addresses their needs, health care efforts must ensure that data collection efforts include the Asian American community and distinguish the differences between Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

Finally, all pregnant women and children must have access to affordable and comprehensive health services. Children, especially those in low to moderate income households, comprise one of the nation’s most vulnerable populations. Making sure that they have quality care is not only the right thing to do, but it will pay off many times down the road.

Health reform that provides children and pregnant women with the services they need will ensure problems are addressed early on and not after health conditions have progressed to a dangerous and costly stage.

The president has said that we all have a stake in fixing health care. In order to break down the barriers that face the Asian American community, we must dispel the model minority myth and call for health care changes that expand access to the underserved throughout our community. ♦

Alice Dong is the health law policy staff attorney with the Asian American Justice Center in Washington, D.C.

http://www.nwasianweekly.com/wp/2009/08/commentary-asian-americans-must-demand-reform-in-their-healthcare/

6-Aug-09 12:00 PM

Va. Asian Chamber of Commerce Holds Legislative Summit

Nicole Duran — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 14:00:00 GMT

Va. Asian Chamber of Commerce Holds Legislative Summit

By Reed Williams

Published: August 6, 2009

Business leaders, attorneys and community leaders discussed a wide range of issues last night during the Virginia Asian Chamber of Commerce's first-ever legislative summit.

Participants took on topics such as health care, civil rights, housing, education and business as the chamber began the process last night of creating a legislative agenda for this election year.

Mark Keam, a Democrat running for the 35th District seat in the Virginia House of Delegates, asked a crowd of close to 50 people at the event in Richmond for support.

"We need people who can really speak up for our community," said Keam, of Vienna.

Tony Pham, vice president of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Virginia, said the shootings that left 33 people dead at Virginia Tech -- including the South Korea-born gunman -- demonstrated a need for greater training to help mental-health professionals understand Asian cultures.

Pham noted that many Asian families are uncomfortable discussing mental-health issues.

Pham added that language barriers can cause problems with some Asian-Americans who have run-ins with the law, and who might not have access to a lawyer who looks like them or speaks their language.

My Lan Tran, an organizer of last night's event, commented on recent homicides involving Asian food-delivery employees. A Chinese-food delivery driver was killed July 27 at Richmond's Whitcomb Court public-housing complex, and another was killed in April in Henrico County.

"Criminals know that these people are newer arrivals, have limited language knowledge and ability to defend themselves," Tran said.

Aarathi Haig, a civil-rights attorney for the Asian American Justice Center in Washington, also spoke last night. Haig seeks to ensure that Asian-Americans get a fair shake in federal contract programs.

"Asian-American discrimination is something that is very real," Haig said.

Contact Reed Williams at (804) 649-6332 or rwilliams@timesdispatch.com

6-Aug-09 10:00 AM

Court must uphold voting safeguards

Leonie Campbell — Sun, 03 May 2009 14:00:00 GMT

By Terry M. Ao
Sunday, May 3, 2009

Discrimination persists at the polls, so the Supreme Court should not retreat on this issue. We still need special protections for minority voters.

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court heard the case of Northwest Austin Municipal Utility District Number One v. Holder. At issue is Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which requires certain states with egregious histories of racial discrimination to obtain Justice Department approval before changing their election practices.

Section 5 strives to ensure that these states don't redraw district lines or relocate polling places in ways that make it more difficult for racial and ethnic minorities to exercise their right to vote.

In the states fully covered by Section 5 -- Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia -- Asian-American voters continue to experience discrimination.

During the 2008 elections, Asian-Americans had to overcome many barriers at the polls to exercise their right to vote. These obstacles included inadequate language assistance, improper identification checks, poll site confusion, racially biased and poorly trained poll workers, incomplete voter lists and denials of provisional ballots.

And the legacy of discrimination in these states casts a shadow.

Take a look at Texas. The state maintained whites-only primaries until the Supreme Court found them to be unconstitutional in 1944. But voter discrimination did not end there.

After a black candidate almost won a council seat in Austin, the city adopted at-large elections in the 1950s to make sure black voters would be outnumbered by whites.

And, at a recent election committee hearing, Texas state Rep. Betty Brown suggested voters of Asian descent should adopt names that are "easier for Americans to deal with."

For years now, Asian-Americans have been moving in significant numbers beyond their traditional states of California, New York and Hawaii. In two big cities covered by Section 5 -- Atlanta and Houston -- the Asian-American community is burgeoning.

Often they are perceived as "outsiders" and face increased levels of racial tension and discrimination.

Section 5 remains relevant and is needed to help protect the Asian-American voters.

Civil-rights groups like the Asian American Justice Center, the Asian Law Caucus, the Asian Pacific American Legal Center, the Asian American Institute and the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association have filed an amicus brief in support of Section 5.

It provides an important tool in combating voting discrimination against minority populations and is essential to ensuring access to the polls by all Americans. Without Section 5, discrimination against racial minorities at the polls can be expected to increase.

Terry M. Ao is the director of census and voting programs for the Asian American Justice Center.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/opinion/s_623284.html

3-May-09 10:00 AM

Groups Urge Coverage For All Children Under Health Overhaul

Leonie Campbell — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 20:45:00 GMT

Five leading civil rights groups have created a partnership urging Congress to pass legislation that provides all children with affordable, quality health insurance by the end of the year, representatives of the groups said Friday at a Capitol Hill briefing.

The National Council of La Raza (NCLA), the Asian American Justice Center (AAJC), the National Association for the Advancement for Colored People (NAACP), the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and the Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) were joined by Neera Tanden, counselor for health reform in the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

The panelists said the expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) that went into effect this month will still leave an estimated five to six million children uninsured. The groups said they will be focusing their grassroots and lobbying efforts on ensuring that national health care legislation is passed this year and covers all children.

“Today is a call to action to keep momentum on health reform,” said Janet Murguía, NCLR president and CEO. “We have to keep the pressure on members of Congress . . . We have to keep moving forward.”

“This is the year to get it done,” said CDF President Marian Wright Edelman. “It’s long overdue.”

Panelists said health care legislation should cover all children and pregnant women, and ensure that the coverage is affordable. The group proposed establishing a national eligibility floor of 300 percent of the federal poverty level, with an affordable buy-in option on a sliding scale for Americans above that level.

The coalition also said children and pregnant women must have access to comprehensive benefits with emphasis on prevention, early detection, appropriate post-partum coverage, and culturally and linguistically appropriate services, among other things. American minority groups especially lack access to proper health care services, panelists said.

AAJC Deputy Director Vincent A. Eng said 12 percent of Asian American children are uninsured, for example, and one third of the Asian American community is limited English proficient. In addition, the American Indian youth suicide rate is three times the national average while the infant mortality rate is approximately 40 percent, according to Jacqueline Johnson Pata, executive director of the NCAI.

The groups also said Congress must create a simple and equitable health care system so the American people can understand how to achieve coverage. Health care overhaul should eliminate unnecessary paperwork and bureaucracy and employ automatic enrollment, they said.

Panelists also said a new health care system should treat all American children equally, regardless of their economic situation or location.

“There are not two classes of children,” Edelman said.

“Our children are our children no matter what state they are in,” said Benjamin Todd Jealous, president and CEO of the NAACP. “Coverage must be affordable.”

While the new partnership is advocating for full coverage of children and pregnant women, panelists said the ideal legislation would cover all Americans.

“Parents who aren’t covered don’t cover their children,” Tanden said. “We need to cover every child in America, but we also need to cover every American.”

By Melissa Attias, CQ Staff

Source: CQ HealthBeat News

17-Apr-09 4:45 PM

Math gets political as 2010 Census nears

Leonie Campbell — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 15:00:00 GMT

Efforts launched to count shifting minority groups

By Jesse Washington, Associated Press | March 18, 2009

What seems like a simple question - How many Hispanics are living in the United States? - has become surprisingly complex as the 2010 Census approaches.

Hispanics and other minorities have historically been undercounted in the once-a-decade survey. Advocacy groups are now launching their traditional efforts to ensure an accurate count, but a variety of factors have created new problems for the painting of America's official portrait.

Activists and government officials say fears about immigration enforcement and government snooping are making people more reluctant to share their information.

The economic meltdown and Bush administration budget cuts have slowed funding for the census. Millions of laid-off renters and foreclosed homeowners are on the move.

There are more immigrants here, speaking more languages, than ever before. Some of those immigrants may not know what a census is, or may come from countries where such information is used against rather than for the people.

"This country is just much more complex now, on many different levels," said Terry Ao, director of census and voting programs for the Asian American Justice Center.

The 2000 Census counted 35,305,818 Hispanics in the United States. Hispanic groups estimate that several million more were missed. In 2007, the most recent year available, the Hispanic population had grown to an estimated 44,852,816.

The Constitution mandates that every 10 years, each person living in the country - regardless of citizenship or immigration status - must be counted.

The census results are used to draw congressional districts and allocate hundreds of billions of dollars in federal funding for schools, roads and other services. The data also trickle down to state and local governments for determining everything from the size of hospitals to the placement of bus stops.

On a more emotional level, the census is the measure of our nation, a literal definition of what we are. That can touch nerves left raw by the simmering immigration debate.

Anti-immigration groups don't object to an accurate count, which may provide fuel for their arguments. But they are opposed to the past practice of suspending immigration raids while the census is being conducted. And they have major objections to counting non-citizens when drawing congressional districts.

Steven Camarota, director of research at the Center for Immigration Studies, called the practice "an assault on the 'one man, one vote' idea."

"It transfers political power to the citizens who live in districts with high numbers of illegal aliens," he said. "If you live in Southern California, your vote counts a great deal more than if you live in Michigan or somewhere with lower immigration."

Meanwhile, interest groups point out that everyone suffers if undercounting leads to less funding for schools, roads, or hospitals.

18-Mar-09 11:00 AM

Wall Street Journal Views: Karen K. Narasaki

Leonie Campbell-Williams — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 15:00:00 GMT

http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2009/01/20/views-karen-k-narasaki/

21-Jan-09 10:00 AM

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Math gets political as 2010 Census nears

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