Judy Chu, 1st Chinese American woman elected to Congress

On Tuesday, Judy Chu became the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress. Winning nearly 62% of the vote,  Chu succeeds current U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis in the 32nd Congressional District. She managed to tap into Asian voters which compose 13 percent of voters in the congressional district, as well as Latino voters who make up nearly 50 percent.

Chu’s political career began on the Garvey School Board and the Monterey Park City Council, gaining the support of diverse individuals from different parties and backgrounds. In 1986  Chu and husband attorney Mike Eng created the Coalition for Harmony in Monterey Park to promote cultural diversity in the midst of English-only backlash. They created “harmony days” to celebrate the city’s multiple cultures and petitioned to reverse discriminating resolutions.

In 1988, Chu was elected to the council; in 2001, she won an Assembly seat after two unsuccessful attempts. In 2006, Chu ran and won for a position on the Board of Equalization. Chu was sworn in on Wednesday to represent the 32nd congressional district, which includes El Monte, Azusa,  and Covina.

(Photo from californiatargetbook.com)

Dream ACTion Week at UCLA

This week is Dream ACTion Week at UCLA, an educational event that seeks to educate and gather support for the Federal DREAM Act. If passed, the Federal DREAM or Development, Relief, and Education Alien Minors Act will grant citizenship to undocumented high school graduates after completion of a college degree or minimum of two years in the armed forces. Learn more about the DREAM Act and the Alliance of DREAMS, the organization holding the event, here.

Yesterday, I caught a glimpse of the “No Identity Silent Action” in front of the Kerchkoff Steps. Students wearing white face masks held signs in support of passing the DREAM Act and tried to gather petition signatures. I’m not a great photographer, but here are some photos I caught:

Below is also a list of the events taking place this week.

Posted by Evelina Giang, who dares you to grant people their dreams.

Remember the (API) ladies…

The 16 women senators of the 110th Congress. In the current 111th Congress, only 2 out of the 95 women in the House and Senate are Asian Pacific Islanders. Photo from http://www.mikulski.senate.gov/images/16%20Women%20Senators.jpg.

The administration and Congress under President Obama is more diverse than ever.

In our latest issue of Pacific Ties (available soon online), Elizabeth Park reports on seven prominent Asian Pacific Islanders (APIs) in Obama’s administration and First Family.  I am pleased to see a variety of ethnic backgrounds and areas of expertise represented in his picks.

But with the exception of Obama’s half-sister Maya Soetoro-Ng, all of them are male.

And it’s awesome that Nancy Pelosi is the first-ever female Speaker of the House and that a record number of 95 women now serve in Congress.

But only two out of these 95 women are Asian Pacific Islander American, despite the fact that as of 2008, API Americans comprise 5.3% of the U.S. population collectively.

It seems that one-category minorities (such API males or white females) are increasingly represented in politics, but double minorities such as API females are still largely absent from the scene.

Why?

Any thoughts or insights?  Leave your comments below!

– posted by Debbie Chong