Tag: donations

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AALFNY 2024 Public Interest Scholarships – Applications Due April 15

The Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY) is pleased to announce that recipients of its 2024 Public Interest Scholarships will now be entitled to receive up to $6000. Awards are given each year to up to 3 law students with a demonstrated commitment to serving the Asian American community in New York State and the greater New York metropolitan area.

The online application is available at https://www.asianamericanlawfund.org/public-interest-scholarship-online-application/. Applicants should include a description of their proposed summer public service project, if applicable, and the name, email address and phone number of a supervisor at the public service organization or other organization that the AALFNY Scholarship Committee may contact. Confirmation of the public service project is not required at the time of the application but will be required before the award of the scholarship. Applicants are responsible for arranging their own projects.  A list of organizations that have hosted students in the past is on our website https://www.asianamericanlawfund.org/prior-community-scholarship-recipients/. The list is only provided as an example and no guarantee is made that the organizations will continue to host students in 2024 or that volunteering at one of these organizations entitles the applicant to a Scholarship.  Each student is expected to volunteer at least 8 weeks, 35 hours per week, during the summer of 2024 at such project and to apply the award to the payment of law school tuition.

The purpose of the award is to assist law students with their tuition while encouraging them to use their legal knowledge and training to benefit the Asian American community in New York and to foster commitment by law students to public service in New York.  Since 1997, AALFNY has funded more than 60 public interest scholarships to law students.

AALFNY was established in 1993 by the Asian American Bar Association of New York to create and support non-profit and charitable efforts to eliminate prejudice and discrimination and to defend human and civil rights.

Donations to AALFNY may be made at asianamericanlawfund.org/donate.

A copy of our latest annual report may be obtained from AALFNY at P.O. Box 161, 41 Purdy Ave., Rye NY 10580 or from the NY Attorney General’s Charities Bureau website www.charitiesnys.com. Information may also be obtained from AALFNY at [email protected] or the NYS Attorney General at 212-416-8686.

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Support AALFNY and AABANY Projects for the AAPI Community on Giving Tuesday

On Giving Tuesday and through the holiday season, please support the work of the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) and the Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY) to raise awareness of anti-Asian hate and violence, to advocate for solutions, and to ensure legal justice for the Asian American community.  Here are some of the projects AALFNY funds:

  • Anti-Asian Violence Task Force

“Contributions to AALFNY benefit the work of the Anti-Asian Violence Task Force. Survivors of Asian hate crimes receive counseling and advice through the HEART program and a hate crimes reform bill was recently introduced in the New York State legislature,” notes Chris Kwok, chair of the Task Force.

  • AABANY’s Pro Bono Legal Clinic

“I was so taken aback by the pro bono legal clinic, just the fact that there was one for an Asian community, that I’m looking forward to ways that I can get involved if I could perhaps just volunteer for this pro bono legal clinic. It was a very healing experience for me, just to be acknowledged and to receive proper legal advice,” said a victim of an assault.

  • Public Interest Scholarships

“AALFNY’s funding allowed me to participate in a wonderfully educational summer working in BDS’s Immigration Practice and strengthened my commitment to a long-term career in immigration defense in the nonprofit sector,” a grateful scholarship recipient wrote.

  • Asian Voices Video

“The Asian Voices video co-produced by AALFNY is extremely powerful.  It was poignant to see and hear survivors and family members of hate crime victims describe their experiences. Everyone should get a chance to see this video,”  urges Rocky Chin.

Donations to AALFNY may be made at asianamericanlawfund.org/donate or by check to AALFNY, PO Box 161, 41 Purdy Ave., Rye NY 10580. AALFNY is a 501(c)(3) entity and donations are tax-deductible to the extent provided by law.

Your support enables us to serve the Asian American community through activities such as the AABANY Pro Bono Clinic, our Public Interest Scholarship Program which has funded more than 60 scholarships, and our support of AABANY’s Anti-Asian Violence Task Force.  The Task Force’s activities include its Hate Eradication Active Response Team (HEART) which supports community members who have suffered a bias incident or hate crime and advocating for reform in hate crimes legislation.  Donations can be designated for the Task Force by noting “in support of T3” or for the pro bono clinic by noting “in support of pro bono clinic.”

The Asian American Law Fund of New York was established in 1993 by the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) to create and support non-profit and charitable efforts to eliminate prejudice and discrimination and to defend human and civil rights. A copy of our latest annual financial report may be obtained, upon request, from us or from the NYS Attorney General’s Charities Bureau or (212) 416-8686. Our address is P.O. Box 161, 41 Purdy Ave., Rye NY 10580, contact [email protected].  The NYS Charities Bureau is at 28 Liberty Street, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10005

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AABANY Celebrates 2022 Annual Dinner with 800+ Attendees

On Thursday, April 28, 2022, AABANY hosted its 2022 Annual Dinner with the theme “Forging a New Path to an Equitable Future” at Cipriani Wall Street. The dinner attracted over 800 attorneys, judges, prosecutors, in-house counsel, government officials, and dignitaries and sponsorships from more than 50 law firms and corporations.

AABANY was proud to honor:

  • Flora W. Feng, Senior Legal Director, Global Intellectual Property, PepsiCo with AABANY’s Corporate Leadership Award 
  • Emily A. Kim, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Zeta Charter Schools with AABANY’s Women’s Leadership Award

To read more about our extraordinary honorees, read the press release here.

We were joined by New York Governor Kathy Hochul who delivered remarks on the strength of the AAPI community and the importance of coming together to effectuate change. 

This year, Actress/Comedian/Activist Kate Siahaan-Rigg served as MC. She was our MC last year during our Virtual Gala, and this was her first time serving as our live MC at the Annual Dinner. Thank you, Kate, for raising awareness on “representASIAN” while adding color and fun to the ceremony! 

We were proud to honor Allen & Overy with the Law Firm Diversity Award for its commitment to improving diversity and inclusion within the legal profession. To read more about the award, read the press release here. 

In addition, we were also pleased to present the 2022 class of Don H. Liu Scholars: Seung Hye Yan, Edward Jung, and Brian Liu. Read more about the program here.

We extend sincere thanks to everyone who helped us raise over $30,000 for AABANY-AALFNY’s Turn  the Tide (T3) Project to fight anti-Asian hate and violence. We thank Mayer Brown for challenging the audience to match its initial donation of $10,000. Over the course of the evening, attendees tripled the match! We thank MC Kate Siahaan-Rigg for her endless humor and compassion in helping us exceed our fundraising goal. To learn more about the T3 Project see https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.aabany.org/resource/resmgr/2021aav/Turning_the_Tide_v5_compress.pdf

We thank all of the AABANY Annual Dinner Planning Committee members and volunteers for their hard work in making this year’s celebration a huge success.

We thank all of our sponsors. Their generous sponsorships make it possible for us to pursue our mission to advance the interests of the Asian American and Pacific Islander legal community and the communities we serve. Our sponsors support AABANY’s many activities and signature events throughout the year.

Lastly, we thank everyone that attended the 2022 Annual Dinner and celebrated with us. We were happy to see you all in person after two years of quarantine, social distancing and endless Zoom meetings.

More photos to come. Stay tuned! 

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T3 Project: Stand Together with AABANY and AALFNY in Turning the Tide Against Anti-Asian Hate and Violence

AABANY, in partnership with the Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY), is pleased to announce the Turning the Tide (T3) Project. Following the February 10, 2021 publication of AABANY and Paul, Weiss’ report A Rising Tide of Hate and Violence against Asian Americans in New York During COVID-19: Impact, Causes, Solutions, AABANY established an Anti-Asian Violence Task Force to advance the proposals outlined in the report and consider other solutions to address the surge of anti-Asian hate and violence in the community. The Task Force advances the T3 project, which aims to incorporate a three-pronged approach encompassing education and communication, advocacy, and research, to address anti-Asian hate and violence. 

Please stand together with AABANY and AALFNY in turning the tide against anti-Asian hate and violence. We are now accepting donations to support the T3 Project. Donations can be made to AALFNY and will be tax deductible to the extent permitted by applicable law.

For more details about the T3 Project, please click here. 

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Thanks to everyone who came out for the AABANY Holiday Party on Dec. 6 at Kristalbelli. Many members and friends gathered to kick off the holiday season, filling up nearly the entire space on the second floor. We kicked off the AABANY drive to 1,000 paid members campaign and collected donations for Typhoon Haiyan Relief. Donors received free tickets to the Joint Bar Holiday Party taking place that same night at Copacabana. They also had their business cards entered in a raffle drawing for two All-Access tickets to a Nets game at the Barclay Center in January. The prize was donated by our party sponsor, Hudson Court Reporting. Thanks to Hudson for sponsoring!  The Holiday Party ended around 9 pm and a number of the attendees headed over to the Joint Bar Holiday Party at the Copacabana, not letting the rain get in the way of continuing the holiday celebrations.

We wish everyone a happy holiday season! 

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From our Friends at FALAFNY – Report on Typhoon Yolanda: How You Can Help the Victims in the Philippines

As many of you know, the Philippines was recently devastated by what the many have referred to as “the perfect storm,” a “super typhoon,” and “one of the strongest cyclones ever recorded.”
 
It has been a little over a week since Typhoon Haiyan (or Typhoon Yolanda, as it is known in the Philippines) made landfall in the Philippines, and yet the needs of the victims in its path have not abated.  Many remain without shelter, food, water, or medication. According to CNN, as of November 15:

  • more than 3,000 are dead
  • 9 million are affected, 4 million of whom are children
  • 2.5 million are in need of food despite 40 tons of food packs having been distributed
  • $300 million in immediate relief is needed.

The Filipino American Lawyers Association of New York (FALANY), along with the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) and the Asian Pacific American Lawyers Association of New Jersey (APALA/NJ), encourage you to consider helping relief efforts in any way you feel appropriate.

See upcoming fundraising events here.
See locations for donation drop-offs here.

Please keep in mind that due to the magnitude of the devastation and the limited manpower available on the ground, financial contributions to aid agencies are most welcome, rather than donations of consumer goods.
 
If you wish to make a financial donation, we suggest the following organizations for your consideration, both of which have 501©(3) status:

  • University of the Philippines Medical Alumni Society in America (“UPMASA”). UPMASA is a non-profit organization comprised of medical professionals who graduated from the University of the Philippines.  They are accepting donations until December 11 to support their medical mission to the worst affected areas in the Philippines.  The funds will be used to provide acute and prophylactic care to those most in need.  Donations may be made through their website: www.upmasanational.org.
  • Gawad Kalinga (“GK”) is a non-profit organization founded in the Philippines.  It has been at the forefront of ongoing relief efforts. GK is collecting donations to assemble food packs. One food pack costs $5 and will feed a family of four for 3-4 days.  The organization is also collecting donations for the infrastructure rehabilitation and rebuilding of the affected areas.  Donations can be made through their website: www.gk-usa.org/donate. Checks may also be mailed to Gawad Kalinga USA, 13860 Stowe Drive, Poway, CA 92064, Memo: Typhoon Haiyan.

Also attached to this email is a list of upcoming fundraising events in the area and a list of drop off locations for donations in kind (canned goods, blankets, clothing).
 
We encourage you to inquire with your employers regarding donation-matching programs.  The following companies have established such programs:

  • Allstate (dollar-for-dollar match for donations made through Dec. 6; a 15% match will be available thereafter)
  • McGuireWoods (dollar-for-dollar match of donations made to the Red Cross by its employees up to $50,000)
  • Sprint (dollar-for-dollar match of donations made by its employees and retirees up to $25,000)
  • Verizon (dollar-for dollar match of donations made by its lawyers and staff up to $25,000)

We thank you for the time you have taken to read this message and for any help you might be able to give.  Should you need more information, please do not hesitate to contact FALANY at: [email protected].

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Collecting Eyeglasses for EYEsee

AABANY and the Prosecutors’ Committee is lending a hand to both Asian Women In Business (AWIB) and EYEsee to collect old eyeglasses for distribution to visually impaired persons in the Third World.

EYEsee describes what donations are being sought –  any pair of old eyeglasses, prescription or non-prescription, sunglasses or not, even clip-ons!  There is a special need for children’s eyeglasses.

There will be a box the Annual Dinner registration table where eyeglasses can be simply dropped off, so if you are attending, please bring your donation to the Dinner or give your donation to a colleague or friend who is attending so that he/she can drop it off on your behalf.  Here’s hoping that we can help out this worthy cause!