The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a record rate of job loss for Asian New Yorkers, with unemployment benefit applications increasing by more than 6000% from February to June of 2020.
At 1.3 million people, Asian Americans are over 16% of the population in New York City and are growing faster than all other demographics in the City.
In February 2020, Asian Americans in New York City had a jobless rate of 3.4% — however, Asian American unemployment soared to 25.6% by May 2020, the largest increase among all major racial groups.
AAF’s latest report:
Brings you the key demographic data for decision-makers on how different ethnicities within the Asian American community such as Bengali, Chinese, Korean, and so on, were impacted by job losses
Identifies the specific industries that Asian American New Yorkers depend on for work
Reveals the industries that lost the greatest amount of jobs due to the pandemic
Shares recommendations for private and public leaders to help Asian Americans during the COVID-19 recovery
Mayor’s Community Affairs Unit (CAU), Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA), Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants (MOPT) and Mayor’s Public Engagement Unit (PEU) will host a Tenant Protection Training in English, Mandarin and Cantonese and share anti-eviction and tenant protection tools on Tuesday, 10/20/2020 at 3pm.
Participants will be able to learn about tenant rights, tenant protection resources, and referral processes.
On October 9, 2020, the Membership Committee hosted their weekly virtual Membership Mixer, with 20 participants in attendance. This week AABANY had the honor of co-hosting the event with the Filipino American Lawyers Association of New York (FALA-New York). The icebreaker question posed to the group was: “Who is your favorite superhero, real or fictional?” Participants reported they idolized Captain Jean Luc Picard, Spiderman, Xena, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Neo, Jay and Silent Bob, Morpheus, Naruto, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Oksana Chusovitina, and their bartender. Many of the participants hailed from New Jersey, and the burning question of the night was: “Is the beloved NJ ham dish called a pork roll or Taylor Ham?”
The Membership Committee previously hosted Monthly Mixers at bars, ballparks, stadiums, operas, etc, but due to COVID, we have moved online to offer members a weekly outlet to share their feelings, see old friends, and make new connections. Mixers start at 6:30pm on Friday and the main event ends at 7:30pm but many stay on after 7:30pm for smaller breakout groups.
Membership Committee will continue to host weekly virtual mixers until it is safe to gather together again in person.
We are giving away door prizes in some weeks. In order to win, you must be a member and must RSVP on the aabany.org calendar to get a raffle number. Non-members can join the mixer but won’t be eligible to win a prize.
This week Membership Committee gave away a free Membership. Congratulations to Louise Lingat for winning the prize.
Membership Committee would also like to thank Barry Kazan, a Partner at Mintz & Gold LLP for his generosity! Barry offered to pay FALANY and AABANY memberships for the October 9 Mixer attendees who are not already members of the respective bars.
WASHINGTON—The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) is proud to present the 2020 NAPABA President’s Award to Helen Zia, activist, former journalist and author of Asian American Dreams, My Country Versus Me and Last Boat out of Shanghai. An outspoken advocate against hate crimes, she was one of the lead organizers of the Justice for Vincent Chin campaign, which became a national civil rights movement in 1982. In the wake of COVID-19, Zia wrote and spoke on parallels of the Chin case and how the targeting of Asians and Asian Americans will make it harder to stop COVID-19.
The NAPABA President’s Award is given to individuals who demonstrate an exceptional commitment to the Asian Pacific American community. Zia will be featured as part of the Keynote Series during the 2020 NAPABA Convention | Virtual Experience on Sat, Nov. 7, 2020.
“Helen Zia is an outspoken champion on human rights, women’s rights, LGBTQ issues and for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders,” said Bonnie Lee Wolf, president of NAPABA. “She has spent her career in journalism and as an author to counter hate violence and advocate for peace and equality. Because of Helen, the stories of countless AAPIs, including Wen Ho Lee and Vincent Chin, have been told and elevated through her activism and reporting.”
Zia was Executive Editor of Ms. Magazine and a founding board co-chair of the Women’s Media Center. She has been active in many non-profit organizations, including Equality Now, AAJA and KQED. Her ground-breaking articles, essays, and reviews have appeared in many publications, books, and anthologies, receiving numerous awards.
Zia’s advocacy and elevation of the Justice for Vincent Chin campaign activated the AAPI legal community nationwide. The Asian Pacific American Legal Center (now Asian Americans Advancing Justice | Los Angeles), and later the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium (now Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC), were both founded because of the Vincent Chin case. In 1988, NAPABA was founded, in part, by leaders from those organizations. Zia’s almost-twin brother, Hoyt, was the organization’s first president.
NAPABA congratulates Helen Zia as the 2020 NAPABA President’s Award recipient.
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The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) represents the interests of approximately 50,000 legal professionals and nearly 90 national, state, and local Asian Pacific American bar associations. NAPABA is a leader in addressing civil rights issues confronting Asian Pacific American 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 color in the legal profession.
On October 1, 2020, New York launched COVID Alert NY – the official Exposure Notification App created by the New York State Department of Health in partnership with Google and Apple. The app’s purpose is to help anyone 18+ living and/or working in New York fight against COVID-19 by getting exposure alerts, without compromising their privacy or personal information.
The COVID Alert NY app notifies users if they have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. Upon receiving an exposure notification, the app will encourage users to contact their physician or the State Health Department hotline (1-833-227-5045) to get more information about quarantining and testing.
Anyone who downloads the app does not have to worry about being tracked, identified or having their personal information shared. The app is completely anonymous and does not track location or movement; no personal data is collected. The app instead uses Bluetooth proximity-enabled exposure notification technology provided by Apple and Google which is safe and secure.
The more New Yorkers using the COVID Alert NY app, the more effective it will be as a tool to fight against COVID-19. The COVID Alert NY app puts the power in the hands of New Yorkers to protect their neighbors, friends, family and community at large. Together, we can slow the spread of COVID-19.
The free smartphone app is now available for download in the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
Empire Mock Trial is a nonprofit that brings together extraordinary high school students from across the U.S. plus 6 countries. Over the past 6 months, the nonprofit has worked hard to plan a mock trial program for them that is fun, safe, and educational during the age of COVID-19 — this fall, it is finally happening.
Volunteer to judge a mock trial on October 28-31 or November 14-16 (attorneys can judge one trial or multiple). All trials will be held online via Zoom. For most of the students, this is the first time they’ve been able to participate in mock trial in 2020, with COVID having canceled their last season.
The format of each trial depends on which competition you sign-up to judge. Here is a description of each:
Empire @ Home on October (28-31) – students compete from the comfort of their own homes (i.e. you’ll see 12-14 students separately connect to your virtual courtroom). It’s called ‘Empire Chicago’ because we are hosting Chicago themed events for the kids;
Empire One (November 14-16) – one mock trial team assembles in one room to compete against another team (i.e. you’ll see only 2 teams separately connect to your virtual courtroom). It’s called ‘Empire New York’ because we are hosting New York themed events for the kids.
Attorneys can earn up to 3 CLE credits for judging.
If you have any questions, please reach out to Empire Mock Trial via phone or email on their website.
On October 2, 2020, the Membership Committee hosted their weekly virtual Membership Mixer, with 13 participants in attendance. Recently, Membership Committee has used Remo, a new dinner party style platform to hold the mixer. Attendees have the flexibility to visit multiple tables and mix and mingle with guests in a six person group. The icebreaker question this week asked participants if they are looking forward to indoor dining at 25% capacity.
The Membership Committee previously hosted Monthly Mixers at bars, ballparks, stadiums, operas, etc, but due to COVID, we have moved online to offer members a weekly outlet to share their feelings, see old friends, and make new connections. Mixers start at 6:30pm on Friday and the main event ends at 7:30pm but people often stay on after 7:30pm for smaller breakout groups. Mixers are not recorded, and are LIVE, so don’t miss out.
Membership Committee plans to continue hosting weekly virtual mixers until it is safe to gather together again in person.
We are giving away door prizes in some weeks. In order to win, you must be a member and must RSVP on the aabany.org calendar entry to get a raffle number. Non-members can join the mixer but won’t be eligible to win a prize.
AABANY will be a community partner for two film screenings for the 2020 Asian American International Film Festival this fall. These two film screenings include:
Since President Rodrigo Duterte took office in 2016 and announced his campaign to rid the Philippines of drug addicts and dealers, as many as 20,000 Filipinos have been murdered. ASWANG confronts these executions and their devastating aftermath.
CODED BIAS explores the fallout of MIT Media Lab researcher Joy Buolamwini’s startling discovery that facial recognition does not see dark-skinned faces and women accurately and her push for legislative protection against biased AI.
This year, the festival is entirely online; you can watch from home with an internet connection. Each film or event will have a link to purchase your tickets. After you purchase, you will receive an email with a link to view the film. You may purchase anytime within the dates of our festival (October 1 to October 11, 2020). For more information and FAQs, please visit the “How to Festival” section of their website.
Please click the links above to purchase tickets and learn more about the films. AABANY members will receive a 20% discount code to all festival screenings once they register for the event on the AABANY website.
Click here to register for “Aswang” on the AABANY website. Click here to register for “Coded Bias” on the AABANY website.
For more information on the AAIFF, please click here.
Equal justice before the law is not a political issue. It is a constitutional right—one that lawyers pledge to protect when admitted to the bar.
Today, NAPABA is asking you to take another pledge. We ask you to pledge, as a lawyer, that you will challenge the racial discrimination that exists within our justice system.
As Asian Americans, we must stand in solidarity with the Black community. Collectively, we are a powerful force and we must demand change and address deeply rooted racism in our society. We must work to create trust and fairness in our legal system by addressing systemic bias in the law to safeguard civil rights, civil liberties, and justice for all individuals regardless of race, ethnicity, disability, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religious background, or immigration status.
Join us as we pledge to speak out against racism, advocate for change, and persevere in these efforts.
We all took an oath. Let us become a living testament to the principles we vowed to uphold.
Seal Your Pledge with a Donation to Equal Justice Initiative
Taking action today will help solidify your resolve to become an advocate for change. Your contribution enables Equal Justice Initiative to provide pro bono services and conduct research that steers policymakers toward ensuring a more just society.
Libin Zhang, Partner at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver, & Jacobson in New York
The Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) congratulates Tax Committee Co-Chair Libin Zhang on his recent law review article about the proposed Pied-à-Terre tax impact on Real Estate in the New York Law Journal.
The article begins as follows:
It is no secret that the coronavirus pandemic has reduced New York City’s government revenues: sales taxes are down due to a decline in retail sales, there is less use of public transportation, and some individuals have moved out of the city. But as the late 20th century American proverb goes, in every crisis there is opportunity. A revised “pied-à-terre tax” has been introduced in both chambers of the New York State Legislature, which would create an annual property tax of up to 13.5% on certain residential properties with assessed values of $300,000 or more.
Although the latest pied-à-terre tax proposal is an improvement on prior versions, for example by no longer imposing the tax on most rental properties, some issues and questions remain. The tax, if enacted, may affect New York City real estate.
To read the full article, click here (subscription required).
