Tag: support

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AABANY Restaurant Series Dines at Cafe China

On May 12, 2022 the Membership and Bankruptcy Committees hosted a dinner at Cafe China. The acclaimed restaurant is known for its classic Sichuan favorites such as cumin lamb and tea-smoked duck. Membership Vice Chair Ashley Shan planned the family style menu, and the group had a great time discussing food, tv and career goals.

We thank Will Hao, Bankruptcy Chair, for co-hosting!

AABANY is trying to support small Asian owned businesses and restaurants through our Restaurant Series, which will be held twice a month. Our next event is at Louie’s Pizza, whose owner and his father stood up for the victim of an anti-AAPI attack. Louie and Cazim courageously came to the help of an elderly Korean woman who was being robbed and attacked in front of their store and were themselves stabbed in the process. We hope you will join us in supporting the restaurant on May 28, 1pm at Louie’s Pizza (8134 Baxter Ave, Queens). For more information and to register, please visit https://www.aabany.org/events/event_details.asp?legacy=1&id=1638502. For more information, please email Membership Director Christopher Bae at [email protected].

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Stand With Us and Support the Pro Bono Clinic on GivingTuesday, Dec. 3, 2019

Happy Thanksgiving!

GivingTuesday is being held this year on December 3. It is a global movement that began in 2012, and the idea behind it is simple: Do good and help transform your community with your generosity. During this holiday season, we ask that you support our Pro Bono Legal Advice and Referral Clinic, a project of the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) and the Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY).

The Pro Bono Clinic began in December 2015 and has since served thousands of low-income clients facing various legal hardships. The Clinic has been held in Manhattan’s Chinatown on the second Wednesday of each month since that time. The success of our Clinics in Manhattan has led to an expansion into Brooklyn, which started this fall on a bimonthly basis. We work with local elected officials and community organizations to reach Brooklyn’s Asian American community and draw upon the expertise and language skills of AABANY’s active and diverse membership to serve them. Clients have been coming not only from the five boroughs but from as far as Yonkers, Long Island, New Jersey, and Connecticut.

Our Clinics provide high-quality legal services that are culturally sensitive and linguistically competent. Language and culture pose serious barriers for low-income Asian American community members to receive reliable legal advice. Our Clinics help community members overcome these barriers and seek to widen their access to justice. The Clinics now include mental health professionals and benefits counselors to help community members with their non-legal problems.

Hundreds of volunteers have dedicated thousands of hours for the Pro Bono Clinics. Month after month, they freely donate their time, expertise and legal knowledge to help community members who otherwise would not get the help they need.

Our Pro Bono Clinics can only continue to operate with the generosity of our donors. In September, we announced our goal to raise $25,000 to support the Clinic’s growing operations. We ask that you stand with us and support this vital project. Help us not only to reach our goal of raising $25,000 — through your donations on GivingTuesday – but exceed it! Your donations will support our ongoing expansion efforts and pay for much needed administrative support and supplies.

To make it easier for our members and our community to donate to the Pro Bono Clinic, you can text APAPROBONO to 44321 on your phone. That will send you to our Give Lively page, and you can follow the simple instructions there to make your contribution. You can also donate via the AALFNY website at https://www.asianamericanlawfund.org/donate/ (make sure to indicate that you are donating to the Clinic). Any amount, large or small, will go a long way towards helping us meet our $25,000 goal.

With our best wishes to you all during this holiday season,

Karen Kithan Yau
Pauline Yeung-Ha
Judy Ming Chu Lee
Asako Aiba
Co-Chairs, AABANY Pro Bono and Community Service Committee

A copy of AALFNY’s latest annual report may be obtained from AALFNY at  [email protected] or from the NY Attorney General’s Charities Bureau website www.charitiesnys.com. Information may also be obtained from the NYS Attorney General at 212-416-8686.

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Please Support AABANY’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic

Dear AABANY Members,

Happy holidays!

In this season of giving, we count among our blessings being part of the great community that is the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY).  Our strongest asset is you, our members, and we are writing now to appeal to you for support of AABANY’s Monthly Pro Bono Clinic.

From its beginning, AABANY has sought to serve the community and to advocate for it. In that spirit, AABANY started the Monthly Pro Bono Legal Advice and Referral Clinic. By leveraging expertise and language skills of AABANY’s active and diverse membership, the Clinic effectively expands access to justice and provides the Asian American community a way to receive high-quality legal services that are also culturally sensitive and linguistically competent.

Working with community organizations, the Clinic in the last few years has provided hundreds of low-income clients with free legal advice.  These clients hail from all five boroughs, with some coming from as far as Yonkers, Long Island, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Most of these clients are monolingual Chinese and Japanese speakers. This fall the Clinic began to systematically incorporate Know-Your-Rights training on topics such as employment and housing law.

The dry facts do not adequately convey the Clinic’s importance to the Asian American community, especially in these trying times. Let us share with you some recent cases that exemplify typical clients and the routine problems they face:

  • An elderly woman and her son were being harassed and evicted by their landlord. The mother and her deceased spouse had raised her entire family in her apartment, and her son had spent his entire life there. The basis for the eviction was that they declined to sign leases that their landlord suddenly demanded after allowing this practice for nearly 40 years. We provided them with an understanding of the holdover process and referrals to pro bono counsel and lawyers who charge on a sliding scale.
  • A woman recently was seeking a divorce from her husband who held all of their assets and frequently threatened to kill her and himself, if she ever left him. A light bulb went off in her head during the consultation when she first recognized the signs of domestic violence and abuse in her situation. Because of this community member’s cultural upbringing, she would have never termed her marriage abusive. At the Clinic, we referred her to a legal services office that specializes in representing survivors of domestic violence.
  • Just last month, we counseled an employee whose employer broke its written promise of a specified salary. This employee began to suffer from anxiety and depression due to this work-related stress and sought treatment. The same employer not only declined to move her assignment closer to her home to accommodate her disability but it also publicly disclosed her mental health status to her colleagues in violation of the law.  

At these monthly sessions, we are often outraged by the reports of flagrant violations of the law. We are gratified that numerous AABANY members volunteer as pro bono lawyers for two hours once a month to bring access to justice to many community members who otherwise would have continued to bear the brunt of these injustices and illegalities, without recourse or effective assistance.

The Clinic can only operate with the generosity of donors and volunteers. During this holiday season, please consider supporting this vital project that is close to our hearts by donating to the Clinic. The Clinic has grown in the last year to the point that we are sometimes seeing nearly 50 clients in a short two-hour span. Your donations will help to pay for much needed administrative support and supplies that currently come out of the limited budget allocated to the Pro Bono and Community Service Committee that is charged with running the Clinic.

AABANY’s 501(c)(3) affiliate, the Asian American Law Fund of New York (AALFNY), is accepting charitable donations and can issue a tax receipt to you for your generous support. Any amount, large or small, would help, but if you can spare $25, $50, $100 or more, it would go a long way. The community members coming to the Clinic will greatly appreciate it!

When you go to the AALFNY website to make your donation, please be sure to indicate in the memo field that you are donating to the Pro Bono Clinic. Please take a moment today to visit this link and make a donation:

https://www.asianamericanlawfund.org/donate/

Best wishes to you and yours,

Yang Chen
Executive Director

Karen Kithan Yau
Pauline Yeung-Ha
Judy Ming Chu Lee
Asako Aiba

Co-Chairs, Pro Bono and Community Service Committee

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NAPABA Submits Testimony in Support of the Nomination of  Judge Amul Thapar for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals

For Immediate Release
April 26, 2017

For More Information, Contact:
Brett Schuster, Communications Manager
[email protected], 202-775-9555

WASHINGTON — Today,
Judge Amul R. Thapar sat before the Senate Judiciary Committee during a
hearing on his nomination to serve on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
Sixth Circuit.

“Today’s hearings demonstrate that Judge Amul Thapar is
a highly qualified nominee,” said Cyndie M. Chang, National Asian
Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) president. “He is an experienced and fair jurist who was confirmed by the Senate by voice vote to his current position on the bench. Judge Thapar is a trailblazer and role model for many in our community, as the first South Asian American to serve on the federal bench.”

“The
National Asian Pacific American Bar Association extends its strong
support for Judge Thapar’s nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals for
the Sixth Circuit. NAPABA urges the Senate to hold a prompt vote and
swiftly confirm Judge Thapar.”

Judge
Amul Thapar was confirmed by the Senate by voice vote to the U.S.
District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky in 2007. NAPABA
supported his nomination to the bench at that time. He has a long record
of public service, including serving as U.S. Attorney for the Eastern
District of Kentucky. If confirmed, Judge Thapar would become the second
South Asian American to serve as a federal Article III appellate judge
and the fifth currently active Asian Pacific American federal Article
III appellate judge.

NAPABA
provided testimony in support of Judge Thapar, stating: “Judge Thapar
would make an immediate contribution as a federal circuit court judge.
His qualifications, integrity, intellect, and commitment to the justice
system are unquestionable. He brings dedicated talent and understanding
of the issues before the court, and a willingness to tackle complex
issues, that is inspiring… [T]he swift confirmation of Judge Thapar is
important to NAPABA and the Asian Pacific American community.”

Read NAPABA’s statement on the nomination of Judge Thapar here. Read NAPABA’s testimony here.

For more information, the media may contact Brett Schuster, NAPABA communications manager, at 202-775-9555 or [email protected].

The
National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) is the
national association of Asian Pacific American (APA) attorneys, judges,
law professors, and law students. NAPABA represents the interests of
over 50,000 attorneys and over 75 national, state, and local bar
associations. Its members include solo practitioners, large firm
lawyers, corporate counsel, legal services and non-profit attorneys, and
lawyers serving at all levels of government. NAPABA engages in
legislative and policy advocacy, promotes APA political leadership and
political appointments, and builds coalitions within the legal
profession and the community at large. NAPABA also serves as a resource
for government agencies, members of Congress, and public service
organizations about APAs in the legal profession, civil rights, and
diversity in the courts.

NAPABA
continues to be a leader in addressing civil rights issues confronting
Asian Pacific American communities. Through its national network of
committees and affiliates, 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.

To learn more about NAPABA, visit www.napaba.org, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter (@NAPABA).

National Asian Pacific American Bar Association | 1612 K St. NW, Suite 510 | Washington, D.C. 20006 | www.napaba.org

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AALDEF Baseball Fundraiser: Mets vs. Phillies at Citi Field on 8/31

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The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) invites you come watch the Philadelphia Phillies take on our very own New York Mets on Monday, August 31st!

AALDEF participates in a special program that helps to raise funds for public interest organizations. By purchasing tickets to select baseball games through this program, your cost will include the value of the ticket plus an additional tax-deductible donation to support AALDEF. These tickets (including the donation) are below regular price. Your donations go directly toward AALDEF¹s legal and education programs. Please take advantage of this opportunity to root for your team while making a contribution for a good cause!

Game/Ticket Details:

  • Mets vs. Phillies at Citi Field
  • Monday, August 31 at 7:10 pm 
  • Between home & first in Promenade Section 509
  • $12 per ticket + $3 donation or more

Tickets are limited, so reserve yours today! Please reserve by August 21 to ensure ticket delivery on time. Please contact Kenneth Fuentes at [email protected] or (212) 966-5932 x 208 to place your order and receive further instructions for payment and delivery/pickup.

AALDEF thanks everyone for their continued support!

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From AALDEF: Support Civil Rights and Root for the Mets or Yankees!

Did you know that there’s a way that you can attend Mets and Yankees games and­ support the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund? AALDEF participates in a special program that helps to raise funds for public interest organizations. By purchasing tickets to select baseball games through this program, your cost will include the value of the ticket plus an additional donation to support AALDEF. All donations go directly toward AALDEF’s legal and education programs. Please take advantage of this opportunity to root for your team while making a contribution for a good cause!

METS
Mets vs. Atlanta Braves at Citi Field
Tuesday, August 26, 7:10 pm
Section 512 (above home)
$25 per ticket, plus $5 donation or more

YANKEES
Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium
Thursday, September 4, 7:05 pm
Section 426 (above third base)
$29 per ticket, plus $11 donation or more

Tickets are limited, so act fast! Please contact Eva Lew at [email protected] or (212) 966-5932, ext. 208 to reserve your tickets. After your reservation is confirmed, we will accept check and credit card payments. Tickets can either be mailed or held for pick-up at the AALDEF office at 99 Hudson Street in Manhattan. Thank you for supporting AALDEF!

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Press Release: Asian American Bar Association of New York Support of Joint Statement on Comfort Women Issue & City of Glendale, CA

NEW YORK – April 25, 2014 – The Asian American Bar Association of New York (“AABANY”) announces its support of the Joint Statement on Comfort Women Issue regarding the City of Glendale, California’s approval of a public memorial commemorating the more than 200,000 Asian and Dutch women coerced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Armed Forces of Japan between 1932 and 1945.

“AABANY fully supports the Joint Statement on Comfort Women Issue issued on April 21, 2014 by organizations including (but not limited to) the Council of Korean Americans (CKA), the Korean American Bar Association of Washington, D.C. (KABA-DC), the Asian Pacific American Lawyers Association of New Jersey (APALA-NJ), the Filipino American Lawyers Association of New York (FALANY), and the Korean American Lawyers Association of Greater New York (KALAGNY),” said AABANY President Clara Ohr.  “The public memorial approved by the City of Glendale, California is an important tribute to the thousands of women who suffered immeasurable humiliation, pain, and suffering during Japan’s colonial and wartime occupation of Asia and the Pacific Islands.  By educating current and future generations of the gross injustices these women suffered, the City of Glendale Comfort Women Memorial may even have a role in helping to prevent a repeat of such tragic history.”

The full text of the Joint Statement is as follows.

The Korean American Bar Association of Washington, D.C. (KABA-DC), Filipino American Lawyers Association of New York (FALANY), Pan Asian Lawyers of San Diego (PALSD), the Asian Pacific American Lawyers Association of New Jersey (APALA-NJ), Orange County Korean American Bar Association (OC KABA), Korean American Lawyers Association of Greater New York (KALAGNY), Korean American Bar Association of Chicago (KABA-Chicago), Korean American Bar Association of Georgia (KABA-GA), Korean Community Lawyers Association (KCLA), Korean American Bar Association of San Diego (KABA-SD), Korean American Bar Association of Northern California (KABANC), Korean American Civic Action Committee, and the Council of Korean Americans (CKA)  are deeply appreciative of the Glendale City Council’s support for and approval of a public monument in memory of the more than 200,000 Asian and Dutch women who were coerced into sexual slavery by Imperial Armed Forces of Japan between 1932 and 1945 (the “Comfort Women Monument”).

These women suffered unimaginable violence and brutality. Many have died; many near the end of their lives. It is important to remember what happened to them. They were victims, along with many others, of Japanese militarism and colonialism.  

The suffering of these women, sometimes called “comfort women” after a Japanese euphemism for them, is a historical fact. As the U.S. House of Representatives said in H.R. 121: “[T]he Government of Japan, during its colonial and wartime occupation of Asia and the Pacific Islands from the 1930s through the duration of World War II, officially commissioned the acquisition of young women for the sole purpose of sexual servitude to its Imperial Armed Forces.” These women “suffered gang rape, forced abortions, humiliation, and sexual violence resulting in mutilation, death, or eventual suicide in one of the largest cases of human trafficking in the 20th century.” This resolution, which was adopted unanimously by the House of Representatives, was written and sponsored by Congressman Mike Honda of California. 

We deplore the filing of a lawsuit in Federal district court that seeks the removal of the Comfort Women Monument. We are especially saddened by the representation of the plaintiffs in that lawsuit by Mayer Brown, a well-respected international law firm. The Complaint written by Mayer Brown lawyers refers to the comfort women as women “who were recruited, employed, and/or otherwise acted as sexual partners” of Japanese soldiers, without any acknowledgement of the violence committed against them. The Complaint goes on to argue that the actions of the Glendale City Council violate the United States Constitution. We cannot see how it could responsibly be argued that the approval of a memorial to the victims of wartime sex trafficking could be an unconstitutional act.

We also condemn those who would use the comfort women issue as an excuse to attack the Japanese American community. It is irresponsible to blame Japanese people generally, and especially irresponsible to blame Japanese Americans, for what happened during the World War II era. The actions at issue were taken 80 years ago by officials of the Japanese government.

George Santayana noted that “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” We applaud the Glendale City Council’s act of remembrance. We hope that by facing historical truths we can avoid the tragic mistakes of the past and strive for a more just and humane world. Please contact Yule Kim of KABA-DC at [email protected] for more information.

For more information, please contact Simone Nguyen, AABANY Program Associate, at (718) 228-7206, or direct any inquiries to [email protected].

The Asian American Bar Association of New York is a professional membership organization of attorneys concerned with issues affecting the Asian Pacific American community.  Incorporated in 1989, AABANY seeks not only to encourage the professional growth of its members but also to advocate for the Asian Pacific American community as a whole.  AABANY is the New York regional affiliate of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA).

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Additional information about AABANY is available at www.aabany.org

Follow our blog at www.blog.aabany.org

Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/aabany

Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/aabany

Find us on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/aabany

 

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Save the Dates! Upcoming Manhattan Family Justice Center Trainings

  • Consumer Credit and Debt Issues for IPV Survivors
          Friday, April 25th 3-5 pm
 
  • How to File Family Offense Petitions Online
          Monday, April 28th 12-1 pm
          Tuesday, April 29th 12-1 pm
 
  • Elder Abuse: What You Need to Know
          Wednesday, April 30th 1-4pm
 
  • Improving the Identification and Support of Sex Trafficking Victims
          Friday, May 2nd 1-4 pm
 
All trainings will be held in the MFJC Training Room at 80 Centre Street 5th Floor, New York, NY 10013. 

Questions? Contact Sarah Flatto.

Sarah Flatto
Director, Programs & Outreach
NYC Family Justice Center, Manhattan
80 Centre St. 5th Floor New York, NY 10013
Mayor’s Office to Combat Domestic Violence
(212) 602-2857 | (212) 602-2800
[email protected] | www.nyc.gov/domesticviolence

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From AAF: State of Asian American Children – National Report and Conference

From our friends at the Asian American Federation comes this announcement:

The Asian American Federation is preparing a first ever national report to examine changes in demographics and socioeconomic status of Asian American children. The report will help us better understand the characteristics and growth of Asian American children, identify family support, as well as financial, educational and health related needs.

A conference to discuss the report’s findings, policy implications and philanthropic responses will be held:

Thursday, March 27, 2014
Time Warner Center, New York City
8:00am breakfast & registration
8:30am program

This full day event will include continental breakfast, plenary sessions, concurrent workshops and a networking reception. Discussion topics include:

  • Early childhood development including health disparities and access to care
  • Health policy that promotes healthy children in Asian American communities
  • Social policy towards working poor families
  • Education policy to promote academic success for at-risk youth
  • Depression and suicide among adolescent females
  • Philanthropy as an advocacy tool

CONFERENCE AGENDA

FEATURED SPEAKERS

SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION

 

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More Law Firms Support Typhoon Haiyan Relief Efforts

More Law Firms Support Typhoon Haiyan Relief Efforts

Which law firms – large and small, domestic and international – are supporting Philippine typhoon relief efforts?

David Lat of ATL noticed the recent efforts by FALANY, AABANY, APALA-NJ and APABA-PA to raise funds for Typhoon Relief. Thanks to Anna Mercado for sharing this blog entry with us, and thanks to everyone for the support. Recovery and rebuilding continues so please continue to donate if you can.