Month: November 2021

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AABANY Members: Donate Spanish Books to RAICES

Tina Song, member of PBCS and Immigration Committees at AABANY, writes the following urging AABANY members to donate books to the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES):

Raising Awareness, Raising Hope 

“So Matilda’s strong young mind continued to grow, nurtured by the voices of all those authors who had sent their books out into the world like ships on the sea. These books gave Matilda a hopeful and comforting message: You are not alone.” –Roald Dahl, Matilda

At the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), I represent young children who crossed the United States borders illegally and currently residing in shelters at Corpus Christi, Texas. The population that RAICES serve are children ranging from ages two to seventeen years old. Many of these children have fled their countries to the United States to escape poverty and violence. Violence and abject poverty are oftentimes the moving force that drives these children coming to the United States in search of a chance for a better future.  

At my job, I met a young African girl who was raised under an abusive household where her father forced his daughters to follow the customs of a secret society in which the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM) is sacred and the norm. FGM is often motivated by beliefs about what is considered acceptable sexual behavior and is often considered a necessary part of raising a girl and preparing her for adulthood and marriage. FGM is mostly carried out on young girls between infancy and age 15.

As a result from this torturous practice, both of her two sisters died from FGM. To escape his guilt and crimes, the father sent her to the United States illegally. During her treacherous travels to United States, her chaperone was murdered and she was raped. 

After spending time with my client, I found that her simple wish is to have more English or Spanish books at the shelter so that she can learn English and Spanish to communicate with her friends there. 

I implore you, my friends and colleagues at AABANY to consider making a donation to RAICES so that we can provide books for these young minds. You can mail any used books in Spanish that are in great conditions. Please send me an email at [email protected] and I will provide you the address to mail the books to. If you do not have time to purchase books, you can also send me your abandoned gift cards from Barnes & Nobles, gift cards from bookstores redeemed from your credit card points, or any gift certificates from small independent bookstores or Amazon, and I will help make the purchases. 

Your used Spanish books or Spanish books donated/purchased will be dropped off by my staff at RAICES or myself to the shelters. I will send you follow-up emails of your donation and purchases. 

If you don’t feel comfortable supporting my cause, then please consider donating books to: 

One Book One World: https://onebookoneworld.org/2021-aapi-book-drive. One Book One World is co-founded by Zhixian Jessie Liu, one of the co-chairs at the Immigration Committee. Her organization helps raise awareness of ethnical Asian novels and authors by sending such books to New York City’s day cares, schools, and learning centers. One Book One World will has been providing their book lists to us for our cause. 

Even if you can’t contribute, feel free to send us book lists and we will use the funds to make the purchases. Please do not send any monetary donations. At this time, we are only looking for books or giftcards to support bookstores, retail or independent, not money. Unfortunately, your kind act will not result in taxable deduction. 

But if you are buying books or giftcards from Amazon, please choose the Asian American Law Fund of New York, Inc. as your Amazon smile!!! This way, you can help fund the pro bono clinics run by the Pro Bono & Community Service Committee at the same time. The PBCS’s monthly pro bono clinics, which I have volunteered both in-person and remote, promote legal access to the Asian Pacific Islander community. For more information, visit https://probono.aabany.org/donate.    

Your generous donation will bring lots of smiles from these young children and support to the PBCS’s pro bono clinics. 

Have a wonderful upcoming Thanksgiving holiday and thank you in advance for your generous support!

Tina Song, Staff Immigration Attorney at RAICES, Member of PBCS and Immigration Committee at AABANY, Volunteer and Immigration Consultant in PBCS’s pro bono clinics. 

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AABANY Member Tsui Yee Launches YouTube Channel to Share Immigration Law Tips

AABANY member Tsui Yee, former co-founder and Co-Chair of AABANY’s Immigration Law Committee, has launched a YouTube Channel all about immigration law. Tsui is an immigration lawyer who represents clients in family and employment-based petitions and applications, removal (deportation) defense, asylum, and other immigration matters. 

In the first video, Tsui mentions three important things to keep in mind for green card applicants. As Tsui states in the video: 

Here are the basic questions to ask yourself to ensure your application does not end up in the “USCIS limbo” 

Do I qualify for a green card? Try to seek legal advice on whether you qualify and then find someone who you know will correctly file your application. 

Have you filled out your forms correctly? You can still get denied even if you qualify for a green card but incorrectly fill out the forms. 

Does your sponsor have the means of supporting your green card application? Whether the sponsor is family-based or employer-based, your sponsor needs to meet the financial standards to support the application. 

To subscribe to Tsui Yee’s channel, click here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgZMGHXWZH5Pj4MdwXbFCbg

Please join AABANY in congratulating Tsui on this new endeavor!

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AABANY Goes to the Opera: “Turandot” at the Met

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On Tuesday, November 16, AABANY went to the Met Opera at Lincoln Center, an elegant night out co-sponsored by the Membership and Young Lawyers Committees.  “Turandot” proved to be a spectacular feast for the eyes, dappled with humor, tragedy, and an age-old story of unrequited love, sacrifice, and pursuit.  

More than 45 members and guests enjoyed some lighthearted networking on the Family Circle level before the start of the show, and photos were taken against the famous chandeliers of the Opera House.  The experience was enhanced with each person having their own personal subtitles, dimly lit on the backs of the seats in front of them.  Some played with various language settings, to see if in fact, they retained their Italian lessons from high school.  

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The sets were stunning and the score by Puccini was exquisite.  Not a soul wasn’t moved during Act III when the famous “Nessun Dorma” tenor aria vibrated throughout the theater. 

Thanks to everyone who came, and thanks especially to Membership Director Beatrice Leong for organizing the event.  Fun fact: Daphne Chen Matthews, Membership Committee Co-Chair, met both the left and right stage managers on her way home, who confirmed that Turandot “is a perfect introduction to Opera.”  We hope to host more opera nights in the future.

To learn more about the Membership Committee go to http://www.aabany.org/?page=130. To learn more about the Young Lawyers Committee go to http://www.aabany.org/?page=123.

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From Asian American Studies at Hunter College: “Why BTS & K-Pop Should Matter to Asian Americans” on November 17

BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan or 방탄소년단) is the most prominent K-Pop group and one of the world’s most popular musical groups today. How does their worldwide visibility – and public stands on BLM, racial solidarity, and gender identity – affect images of Koreans and Asians, and the identities of Asian Americans? Sociologist Grace Kao will introduce us to K-Pop, and share some video clips and reflections of BTS’s impact on arts and activism. She will also present ongoing research on the influence of K-Pop and BTS in transforming “live” musical performances during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grace Kao is IBM Professor of Sociology and Professor of Ethnicity, Race, and Migration at Yale University.

Register here for a zoom link.

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PBCS Pro Bono Clinic In Collaboration With AAFE – 11/06/2021

AABANY’s Pro Bono & Community Service (PBCS) Committee would like to thank the remote and in-person volunteers who assisted at the Manhattan Chinatown pro bono clinic.  This was the first pro bono clinic to take place at the 2 Allen Street, Manhattan location of Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE).  PBCS and AABANY would like to thank AAFE for their co-sponsorship.  

Fourteen attorneys, non-attorneys, and interpreter volunteers provided 20 clients with legal information and consultation services.  Volunteers performed these services in a wide variety of languages and dialects- including Mandarin Chinese, Cantonese, Taishanese, and Fujianese- reflecting the ability of the pro bono clinic to meet the unique needs of NYC’s Chinatown community.

A substantial number of consultations pertained to housing issues, which remain relevant amid the COVID-19 pandemic.  Many clients were informed of their legal rights and choices as tenants.  In one instance, a client, who is a tenant in rent-stabilized housing, discovered that landlords of rent-stabilized units could not arbitrarily raise the rent of such units for “maintenance-related issues” without the permission of the Homes and Community Renewal agency of New York.  The client also discovered that they were provided with a rental lease that was not authorized for use in rent-stabilized housing units.    

To learn more about PBCS, please click here.  

We would once again like to thank the pro bono clinic volunteers for their dedication and support, which make the work of the clinic possible.  Everyone is encouraged to sign up to volunteer below:

To volunteer at AAFE’s Clinics (Queens and Manhattan) – https://airtable.com/shrtPeVTibQA9qNgD  
To volunteer at CCBA’s Clinics (Manhattan) – https://airtable.com/shrQFecVpU1u5ltAy

Thank you to ALL of our 11/6 volunteers:

AABANYAAFE
Aaron Fong ^Gabriel Hisugan *
Estelle Lu ^*Ivy Au ^
Eugene KimVicky Qiu ^
Johnny ThachYini Fang ^
Judy (Ming Chu) Lee
Karen Kithan Yau *
Kendall Park ^*
Kensing Ng
Kwok Ng
Megan Gao

^ = non-attorney volunteers
* = remote volunteers

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In The News: AABANY’S Karen King Co-Authors New York Law Journal Article in DOJ’s China Initiative

On November 8, 2021, the New York Law Journal published an article co-authored by Pro Bono & Community Service Committee Co-Chair Karen King, together with fellow Morvillo Abramowitz Partner Telemachus Kasulis. The article is entitled “DOJ’s China Initiative’s Three-Year Anniversary: Growing Pains and Uncertainty.” 

The article discussess how the Department of Justice’s “China Initiative” encourages discrimination and racial profiling against Asian Americans. The China initiative was started three years ago to combat economic and national security threats from the Chinese government. The article reveals how in reality only a small portion of cases involved actual charges of economic espionage or conspiracy. In one instance, a Chinese Canadian engineering professor, Anming Hu, was wrongly prosecuted for being a Chinese spy and was acquitted of all charges this past September. 

The authors note a parallel of the China Initiative to other discriminatory acts: “Critics continue to liken the China Initiative to the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, McCarthyism, and racial profiling against Muslims in the wake of the September 11th attacks.” 

The article relates that the Biden administration has only made five new cases public. The authors note that the Biden administration appears to be stepping away from non-disclosure cases in which ties to the Chinese government appear weak. 

To read the full article, click on the following link: 

https://files.constantcontact.com/d6baf1e7801/f2add8b0-8343-4378-956c-6826d2ca9289.pdf

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NAPABA Partners with Queens-Based Main Street Patrol to Encourage Young Adults to Get Vaccinated Against COVID

Hailing from Flushing, Queens, Main Street Patrol protects elders from hate and abuse as they go about their daily routines. They have partnered with NAPABA to encourage young adults to get vaccinated against COVID. Check out their fun and informative PSA on keeping us all safe—not only in the streets, but in life. Get vaccinated!

The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA), represents the interests of over 60,000 Asian Pacific American (APA) legal professionals and nearly 90 national, state, and local APA bar associations. NAPABA is a leader in addressing civil rights issues confronting APA communities. Through its national network, NAPABA provides a strong voice for increased diversity of the federal and state judiciaries, advocates for equal opportunity in the workplace, works to eliminate hate crimes and anti-immigrant sentiment, and promotes the professional development of people of all backgrounds in the legal profession.

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Manhattan DA-Elect Alvin Bragg Announces Transition Team

Following the historic election of Alvin Bragg as the first African American District Attorney in the New York County District Attorney’s Office on Nov. 2, his campaign announced the formation of DA-Elect Bragg’s transition team. Here is an excerpt:

Manhattan District Attorney-elect Alvin Bragg today announced the formation of a transition committee comprised of legal experts, service providers, faith based and community leaders, law enforcement, and those directly impacted by the office, that will help reimagine the office to deliver safety and justice for all.

“I am grateful to this group of talented and committed leaders who are volunteering their time and wisdom to ensure we are ready on Day 1 to transform the office to make it the progressive leader it should be,” said Alvin Bragg, a civil rights lawyer and former Chief Deputy Attorney General of New York. “The Transition Committee will be focused on doing the work necessary to identify the plans and people to implement my agenda to address both the need for fundamental reforms in the criminal legal system and the need for community safety. The two goals of justice and safety are not opposed to each other.  They are inextricably linked.  We deserve and demand both, and that has been the focus of my career, my life, and will be the focus of this office.”

“Together, we will make this office a leader on reform. One that ends racial disparities and mass incarcerations; makes us safer by getting justice for survivors of sexual assault and stopping the flow of guns onto our streets; one that invests in reentry programs and expands treatment for mental health and substance abuse; one that addresses the humanitarian crisis at Rikers; and one that holds police accountable, frees the wrongly convicted and delivers justice for all.”

The Transition Committee will be co-chaired by Lauren-Brooke Eisen, Director of the Justice Program at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, Leroy Frazer, former Chief of Staff and Executive ADA, in Brooklyn and Manhattan District Attorney Offices respectively, and Insha Rahman, Vice President of Advocacy & Partnerships at the Vera Institute of Justice.

For the full announcement, go to https://www.alvinbragg.com/transition-announcement

The Transition Committee includes several members who are associated with AABANY, including Board Director Chris Kwok, former AABANY Development Director Kevin Kim, and AABANY members Asim Rehman and Chanterelle Sung. For the full list of Transition Committee members, see https://www.alvinbragg.com/transition-committee

Congratulations to DA-Elect Bragg and to all the members of the Transition Committee.

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AABANY IP Committee Hosts Dinner at Mama Fina’s

On October 27, the IP Committee held a group dinner at the Filipino restaurant Mama Fina’s in the East Village.  For a number of attendees, it was their first in-person group activity since the beginning of the pandemic.  Many delicious Filipino dishes, like Kare-Kare, Crispy Pata, Squid Sisig, were enjoyed while attendees connected with old and new IP Committee members.  Attendees included students, law firm practitioners, and in-house counsel.  Thanks to everyone who attended.  Look out for more group dinners and other events from the IP Committee throughout the year.  New members always welcome.

To learn more about the IP Committee and to get involved, please go to https://www.aabany.org/page/145

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Pro Bono and Community Service Committee’s Pro Bono Clinics Serve Numerous Community Members in September and October

AABANY’s Pro Bono & Community Service (PBCS) Committee would like to thank everyone who attended the second and third hybrid Manhattan pro bono clinics in September and October, as well as the soft opening of the Queens pro bono clinic this past Saturday, Oct. 30. The three clinics assisted a total of fifty-five (55) clients, who sought advice on a range of topics, including housing law, immigration, elder law, loans and contracts, marriage and divorce, estates law and drafting of wills and powers of attorney, discrimination, 9/11 compensation, and fraud. PBCS and AABANY are grateful to the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association (CCBA) and Asian Americans for Equality (AAFE) for co-sponsoring and hosting these clinics. 

The clinics for the past two months could not have happened without the gracious help of many AABANY members and committees. During the September pro bono clinic, in collaboration with AABANY’s Bankruptcy Committee, PBCS provided a “Know Your Rights” presentation on the topic of bankruptcy and consumer debt. During the October clinics, Rina Gurung and Kevin Hsi, two of the three co-chairs of AABANY’s Government Service and Public Interest Committee, and Zhixian (Jessie) Liu, a co-chair of AABANY’s Immigration Committee, helped PBCS out by volunteering to see clients for one-on-one informational consultations. Thanks to AABANY’s Committees for their camaraderie!

At the pro bono clinics, PBCS volunteers use quick issue-spotting skills to help members of the AAPI community and those with limited English proficiency know what their rights are. For instance, while answering housing questions, a volunteer discovered that a 70-year-old couple living at a rent-stabilized apartment was eligible for the Senior Citizen Rent Increase Exception (SCRIE). SCRIE is a program that allows qualified tenants to have their rent frozen at their current level and be exempt from future rent increases. This is crucial since most seniors depend on their fixed income. If their rent goes up, qualified SCRIE tenants do not have to pay the higher rent, as the City will pay the landlord the difference between the current rent and the future rent. The 70-year-old couple who came into the PBCS clinic will receive assistance from AAFE to apply for SCRIE. 

In order to be eligible for SCRIE, an applicant must be 62 years or older, have less than $50,000 in household income, spend more than 1/3 of monthly income on rent, and reside in a NYC rent-stabilized apartment, rent-controlled apartment, rent-regulated hotel or single room occupancy unit, Mitchell-Lama development, Limited Dividend Housing Company development, Redevelopment Company development, or Housing Development Fund Company development. Senior citizens who own homes, condominiums or private non-government supervised co-ops may also be eligible for SCRIE. To learn more about SCRIE, see https://access.nyc.gov/programs/senior-citizens-rent-increase-exemption-%E2%80%8Bscrie/.

To learn more about the PBCS Committee and its work, click here and here. The next hybrid legal clinics will take place on Saturday, November 6, 2021 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at AAFE, 2 Allen Street (2nd Floor), New York, NY 10002; and Saturday, November 13, 2021, from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. at CCBA, 62 Mott Street (2nd Floor), New York, NY 10013. For up-to-date details about the clinic and other events, please check PBCS’s event calendar.

And as always, we are always looking for volunteers to help us out! 

To volunteer at CCBA’s Clinics – https://airtable.com/shrQFecVpU1u5ltAy

To volunteer at AAFE’s Clinics – https://airtable.com/shrtPeVTibQA9qNgD   

AABANY thanks the following September 18, 2021 Manhattan CCBA Clinic Volunteers:

AABANY  AAFE
Asako Aiba*
Chao Yung (Kloe) Chiu
Megan Gao
Chenxin (Sarah) Li
Eugene Kim
Jason Kuo
Judy (Ming Chu) Lee
Karen Lin
Erxian (Estelle) Lu*
Jayashree Mitra
Kensing Ng*
Kwok Ng
Grace Pan
Anthony Park*
S. Yan Sin
Tina Song
May Wong
Courina Youlisa*
Serena Zou^

AABANY thanks the following October 16, 2021 Manhattan CCBA Clinic Volunteers:

AABANY  AAFE
Xuanyou (Alicia) ChenLuna Fu^
Francis Chin
Yoonhee Kim*
Judy (Ming Chu) Lee*
Karen Lin
Zhixian Liu
Erxian (Estelle) Lu^*
Megan Gao
Kwok Ng
Kendall Park^*
S. Yan Sin
Johnny Thach
Annie Tsao
Bill Yang^*
Teresa Wai Yee Yeung^
May Wong
Meng Zhang*

AABANY thanks the following October 30, 2021 Queens Clinic Volunteers:

AABANY  AAFE
Esther Choi^Lilian Cheung
Megan GaoLuna Fu
Rina GurungGabriel Hisugan
Kevin Hsi
Eugene Kim
Kendall Park^*
Rachel Ji-Young Yoo*
May Wong

^Non-attorney volunteers

*Remote volunteers