priorities Archives - WE Blog @ AABANY

June 9, 2025June 9, 2025

2025 NAPABA Lobby Day

NAPABA hosted its annual Lobby Day on May 20-21, 2025, bringing together members of our community from across the country to Washington, DC. During meetings with Congressional representatives, attorneys, law students, and community leaders advocated for supporting the AANHPI community, advancing a fair and humane immigration system, defending the rule of law and legal profession, and advancing democracy and civil rights.

60+ Meetings

20+ States Represented (plus the
District of Columbia and Guam)

Highlights of Our Lobby Day Include:

Robust Representation
With our participants hailing from over 20 states, the District of Columbia, and Guam taking part in over 60 meetings with congressional offices on both sides of the aisle, NAPABA demonstrated its strength and its commitment to amplifying AANHPI voices in the halls of power.

Advocacy Training
Prior to the meetings, we organized targeted training sessions to equip our participants with the necessary tools and strategies to effectively communicate our policy priorities.

Policy Priorities
Throughout our meetings, we tackled issues critical to the AANHPI community. We advocated for language access protections, opposed discriminatory measures like anti-Asian alien land laws, and supported teaching AANHPI history in schools, including recognizing the legacy of Fred Korematsu. We backed voting rights legislation, LGBTQ+ rights, and funding for legal services. We called for the protections of judges, the right to counsel in immigration settings, and supporting asylum seekers.

Our priorities during Lobby Day reflected the day-to-day policy developments impacting the AANHPI community. Most recently, on May 28, the federal government announced that it would “aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students.” During Lobby Day, we opposed legislation that would impose an outright ban on the issuance of student visas to any citizen of China. Such policies are a relic of history and harken to the 1800s when our communities endured discriminatory laws like the Chinese Exclusion Act. They were wrong then, and they remain wrong today.

Meaningful Engagements
We met with numerous lawmakers and their staff, fostering meaningful dialogues, and building relationships that will be instrumental in advancing our policy objectives. Our Lobby Day participants skillfully articulated our positions, presented compelling arguments, and shared personal stories to humanize the issues that we face. On the evening before our training at our Congressional Reception on Capitol Hill, our participants heard from leaders directly, including Sen. Mazie Hirono (HI), Rep. Ted Lieu (CA-36), and Rep. Grace Meng (NY-06). Our participants also heard from Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-08) during the debrief session.

Regardless of the political dynamics in the Nation’s capital, NAPABA demonstrated its power during Lobby Day. Our members fanned out on the Capitol grounds, engaged with key Congressional offices, and called for their elected representatives to support policies that advance our communities. We are the national voice of the AANHPI legal community, and we stand for the rule of law. Learn more about NAPABA’s advocacy at napaba.org/page/advocacy.

Visit Our Advocacy Page

Visit Our Organizational Statements

Thank You to Our Host

June 1, 2023June 2, 2023

2023 NAPABA Lobby Day Wrap-Up

Reflecting on a Day of Advocacy and Engagement

NAPABA’s 12th annual Lobby Day, held on May 22-23, 2023, brought together a diverse group of AANHPI attorneys, law students, and community leaders from across the country to advocate for meaningful policy changes and address key issues affecting our community. Together, we engaged in productive discussions, shared compelling stories, and sought to create lasting connections with lawmakers and their staff.

Highlights of our Lobby Day achievements include:

Robust Representation: With nearly 90 participants taking part in 52 meetings with congressional offices, NAPABA demonstrated its strength and its commitment to amplifying AANHPI voices in the halls of power.

Advocacy Training: Prior to the meetings, we organized targeted training sessions to equip our participants with the necessary tools and strategies to effectively communicate our policy priorities.

Policy Priorities: Throughout our meetings, we passionately advocated for key issues at the forefront of our community’s concerns, which included the fair treatment of immigrants, the equal rights of the LGBTQ+ community, and the ability of the AANHPI community to pursue their livelihood. Our collective advocacy efforts ensured that these critical topics received the attention they deserve.

Meaningful Engagements: We met with several influential lawmakers and their staff, fostering meaningful dialogues and building relationships that will continue to be instrumental in advancing our policy objectives. Our Lobby Day participants skillfully articulated our positions, presented compelling arguments, and shared personal stories to humanize the issues we face.

Looking ahead, we will maintain our momentum and continue our advocacy efforts beyond Lobby Day. Learn more about NAPABA’s advocacy at napaba.org/page/advocacy

November 18, 2013

Call to Action and Save the Date! Asian Pacific American New Yorkers Count Talking Transition

CALL TO ACTION and SAVE THE DATE

Asian Pacific American New Yorkers Count

For the first time in twelve years, New Yorkers will have a new mayor in January 2014. Asian and Pacific New Yorker are the fastest growing population in our City, a community that provides myriad assets to the vitality of this City.

As you may have heard, Talking Transition is an open conversation about the future of New York City. A tent has been set up on Canal Street and Sixth Avenue for New Yorkers to send to our new Mayor and his transition a message of how he can improve our city.

Please join the Asian American Federation, Asian Americans for Equality and the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families for a “Asian Pacific American New Yorkers Count” session on Friday, November 22, from 12:30pm-1:30pm! This is OUR opportunity to come together and share concerns and priorities of our community, as well as give recommendations to Mayor-Elect de Blasio, his administration and key decision makers.

In addition to our Talking Transition session, we are asking APA-serving groups to collect messages and letters from your community members, in language, on what services are top priorities or their vision for New York City. We encourage creativity! Please bring clients to record a direct message to the Mayor-Elect.

If you are interested in speaking at the Talking Transition session on Friday, November 22nd, please contact Jo-Ann Yoo (jyoo@aafederation.org) or Marissa Martin (mmartin@cacf.org)

Time/Location

Friday, November 22, 12:30pm-1:30pm

(Please arrive a 12:00pm to get a seat)

Duarte Square

Canal Street & 6th Avenue

The Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF), the nation’s only pan-Asian children’s advocacy organization, aims to improve the health and well-being of Asian Pacific American children and families in New York City.

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