Join AABANY at the Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Festival on May 18

The 34th Annual AAPI Heritage Festival will take place in Manhattan this year on May 18 at Confucius Plaza from 11 am to 6 pm. From the organizers:

Organized by the Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans since 1979, this annual festival is the longest running and largest event celebrating pan-Asian heritage nationwide. It celebrates not only the value of families, but also our heritage which make us proud to be Asian American and Pacific Islander.

The festival is free and open to the public thanks to generous contributions over the years from sponsors such as Nielsen, Verizon and Macy’s as well as from supporting companies: McDonalds, Con Edison, Toyota, Pepperidge Farm, Campbell Soup, Different Roads to Learning, and many Asian communities and organizations.

AABANY will be among the exhibitors at the event. Stop by, bring your friend and families, enjoy performances, sample delicious Asian food and check out exhibits from other community groups and vendors. The video above is from last year’s festival, and as you can see, it’s a lively and fun event.

Hope to see you in Manhattan Chinatown on Saturday!

AABANY Testifies at City Council Districting Commission

On August 16, AABANY, through its Executive Director Yang Chen, gave testimony at a public hearing convened by the City Council Districting Commission.  AABANY testified as a member of ACCORD, the Asian American Community Coalition on Redistricting and Democracy, and urged the Commission to draw lines that kept communities of interest together in Manhattan.  Citing the Voting Rights Act and applicable Supreme Court precedent, AABANY indicated that the current district lines in Chinatown and the Lower East Side may not comport with legal requirements.  As part of its testimony, AABANY submitted a copy of its March 2003 letter to the Department of Justice, which dealt with the same issue.  To read the testimony and the letter, go to bit.ly/blog_Testimny_CityCnclDstrctngComm

DISTRICT ATTORNEY VANCE ANNOUNCES NEW CO-DIRECTORS OF THE IMMIGRANT AFFAIRS PROGRAM

For Immediate Release

December 01, 2011

DISTRICT ATTORNEY VANCE ANNOUNCES NEW CO-DIRECTORS OF THE IMMIGRANT AFFAIRS PROGRAM

Victims of Fraud Can Call the Immigrant Affairs Program Complaint Hotline at 212-335-3600

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., today announced the appointments of Assistant District Attorneys Mayerling Rivera and Rosemary Yu as co-Directors of the Office’s Immigrant Affairs Program. The Program was established in 2007 to investigate and prosecute fraud committed against immigrants, and to educate the public about immigration fraud and related issues through fraud prevention workshops and seminars. Since its creation, the Program has fielded more than 2,100 complaints.

“I would like to congratulate Assistant District Attorneys Mayerling Rivera and Rosemary Yu on their well-deserved appointments” said District Attorney Vance. “Keeping this city’s immigrant population safe is one of our top priorities. In their new roles, Ms. Rivera and Ms. Yu will spearhead our Office’s efforts to educate the public about immigration fraud and aggressively prosecute individuals who victimize our immigrant communities.”

District Attorney Vance also thanked Assistant District Attorney Daysi Mejia for her outstanding service during her four years as the founding Attorney-in-Charge of the Program.

Ms. Rivera joined the office in 1996 and spent eight years in Trial Bureau 70, where she prosecuted a variety of violent street crimes. During that time, she was also assigned to both the Sex Crimes and the Domestic Violence Units, and tried numerous felony sex crimes and domestic violence cases. In 2004, she transferred to the former Family Violence and Child Abuse Bureau, where she worked on both domestic violence and child abuse investigations. Recently, she has been assigned to the Special Victims Bureau, where she supervises domestic violence cases, conducts trainings, and handles U-Visa certifications. Throughout her career, Ms. Rivera has done extensive community work throughout the city, focusing specifically on Washington Heights. In addition to her case-related work, Ms. Rivera has frequently spoken on behalf of the Office on a variety of subjects including teen violence, child abuse, and domestic violence. A native New Yorker and fluent Spanish speaker who was raised in Washington Heights, Ms. Rivera is a graduate of Seton Hall University and received her law degree from Seton Hall University School of Law.

Ms. Yu is a native New Yorker who was raised in Chinatown. She joined the Office in 2005, following her graduation from Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law. Ms. Yu was initially assigned to the Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor, where she handled numerous felony narcotics cases and investigations. In 2008, she was one of four ADAs recognized by Special Narcotics Prosecutor Bridget Brennan for her outstanding case work. In 2009, Ms. Yu was assigned to the Special Investigations Bureau, where she worked almost exclusively with the Drug Enforcement Administration Task Force on long-term narcotics investigations using electronic eavesdropping and other investigatory tools. Ms. Yu was assigned last year as one of the five inaugural ADAs in the new Crime Strategies Unit, where she is currently responsible for intelligence coordination and understanding crime trends for the east side of Manhattan South. Ms. Yu is also one of the founding members of the Prosecutors’ Committee of the Asian American Bar Association of New York. She is a graduate of Stuyvesant High School and Claremont McKenna College. After graduating from college, Ms. Yu worked for one year for former U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao.

The appointments will be effective as of December 9, 2011.