Tag: injustice

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League of United Latin American Citizens of New York Honors AABANY for Work in Fighting Anti-Asian Violence

On June 23, 2022, at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, the League of United Latin American Citizens of New York (LULAC NY) honored AABANY for its work in fighting Anti-Asian violence.

For 93 years, LULAC has been fighting for the civil rights of the Latin American community. The Director of LULAC NY, Aureo Ivan Cardona, spoke on the importance of teaming up with other organizations to fight injustice and hate, because any group could be the next victim or scapegoat.

LULAC presented President William Ng with a beautiful wood-carved plaque that says “Stop the Hate… Tolerate.” Joining Will at the reception were Beatrice Leong, Co-VP of Programs and Operations, Shirley Bi, Secretary, and Will Hao, Board Director.

AABANY thanks LULAC NY for bestowing this honor and recognizing AABANY’s anti-Asian violence work.

To learn more about LULAC’s work, see https://lulac.org/about/

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In the News: LGBT Committee Co-Chair Glenn Magpantay Featured in Philadelphia Gay News

Glenn Magpantay, Co-Chair of AABANY’s LGBT Committee and Co-Founder and Former Executive Director of the National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance (NQAPIA), was recently featured in a May 20 article in the Philadelphia Gay News. Titled “Queer Asians speak out against discrimination and injustice,” the article featured four leaders in the LGBT Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, who each discussed the issues individuals who identify as both AAPI and LGBT have to face.

In the article, Glenn spoke about how queer AAPI people are often overlooked. There is a lack of existing queer Asian groups in cities such as Miami and Orlando, and even within the greater LGBT community, AAPIs are not always represented in the public policy agendas of some LGBT organizations. Speaking about the anti-Asian hate and violence during the COVID-19 pandemic, Glenn stated: “[G]ay Asians live at the intersection of a dual identity…The haters — the people who are harassing us, people who yell at us for being coronavirus carriers — they don’t discriminate on whether you’re gay Asian, a trans-Asian, a Korean Asian. It doesn’t matter to them. You just look foreign. You look like you have the COVID virus.” He added: “Our identities as queer Asians have been flattened by the media. How many of [these hate-crime victims] were gay, queer and trans?”

To read the full article, click here.

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AABANY Statement on the Verdict in the Trial of Derek Chauvin

In the wake of the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, and Breonna Taylor in 2020, the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) expressed solidarity with the Black community. On April 20, 2021, a jury in Minneapolis convicted Derek Chauvin on all counts in the killing of George Floyd. AABANY recognizes this guilty verdict as only a first step towards fighting for a future where justice prevails. AABANY acknowledges the longstanding history of systemic injustice faced by the Black community, and we realize how far we all need to go to build a better, more equitable society. This trial should stand as a significant marker of a pivotal point in our history in which police accountability and racial justice emerge as important measures of how our democracy has made progress.

AABANY’s theme this year is “Uniting for Justice and Equity.” As we work to promote diversity, equity and inclusion, and continue our struggle against racism, discrimination, xenophobia, and hate crimes, AABANY stands steadfast in its solidarity with the Black community. When the justice system fails to protect the civil liberties and human rights of the Black community, everyone suffers. Together, we must raise our voices against injustice and call for overdue reform in the criminal justice system.

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AAJANY Statement on Anti-Asian Violence

We are heartened by the expressions of solidarity against anti-Asian bigotry and violence from our brothers and sisters across the many bar and judicial associations. We too express our condolences to the families of all victims in Atlanta and to all Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders who have experienced violence of any kind based on their ethnicity.  To quote the great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: 

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.  We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.  Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”   

– Asian American Judges Association of New York State