The Asian American Scholar Forum (AASF) has spoken out time and time again to condemn words and acts of hate against the Asian American community, and continues to do so as these devastating and racially-motivated attacks continue.
Asian Americans Against Warrantless Surveillance is a coalition led by Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC, Asian American Scholar Forum, Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA), and Stop AAPI Hate. The coalition joins over 50 Asian American and allied organizations to call on Congress to oppose the reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) without comprehensive reforms.
We recognize the grave dangers posed by unchecked national security programs in the United States and the persistent legacy of discrimination that the Asian American and Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim, and South Asian (AMEMSA) communities have endured due to racial profiling and prejudice in the name of national security.
Today, the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) issued its long-awaited report on Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The report, endorsed by a majority of the Board’s members, sheds new light on abuses over the past few years, revealing that, “[i]n the reporting period covering November 2020 to December 2021, non-compliant queries related to civil unrest numbered in the tens of thousands.”
Privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties groups issued the following statement responding to the report:
On Saturday, a gunman who was found to have posted racist writings shot and killed three Black Americans in Jacksonville, Florida near Edward Waters University, a historically Black college. In stark contrast, the day also marked an important anniversary for racial justice—60 years since the first March on Washington where approximately 250,000 Americans led by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. marched against segregation, anti-Blackness, and white supremacy.
The Asian American Scholar Forum (AASF) joined The National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA), Asian Americans Advancing Justice-AAJC (Advancing Justice-AAJC), and several other Asian American-led organizations in attending the 60th Anniversary March on Washington to honor the ways in which the Black-led Civil Rights Movement paved the way for civil rights victories for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. As AASF joined in the recommitments of the March, they also join in expressing the collective grief experienced by Jacksonville and Black Americans across the country.
The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) announced the election of AASF board member Dr. Gang Chen in recognition of his distinguished and continuing achievements in original research. Dr. Chen was among 120 members and 23 international members elected this May.
On April 19, 2023, AASF submitted the following letter to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions to express our strong support for the confirmation of s. Julie Su to serve as the next U.S. Secretary of Labor.
