Washington, DC – Today, the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) announces its endorsement of Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN) for the Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) is thrilled to stand behind a champion of working families and a strong advocate to engage the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community more deeply and meaningfully within the Democratic Party. 
 
Johanna Puno Hester, APALA National President and Assistant Executive Director of the United Domestic Workers, AFSCME Local 3930, stated: “Congressman Ellison’s leadership at the DNC will be a very strategic move for the labor movement as a whole. His focus on working families along with his commitment to the inclusion of diverse people within the DNC leadership signal the way forward for the Democratic Party. His progressive vision and leadership for our country is exactly the kind of Chair the DNC needs.”
 
Congressman Keith Ellison said: “I am honored to receive the endorsement of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance. As the first and only national organization that represents AAPI workers, APALA's importance cannot be stressed enough. I've always been a strong supporter of labor, and if I'm elected the next Chair of the Democratic National Committee, I want all APALA members to know that I'll have their backs day in and day out." 
 
Jigme Ugen, Executive Vice President of SEIU Healthcare Minnesota and APALA member, added: “It’s exciting to see leaders in the party and within labor rally behind a DNC Chair candidate like Keith. Fifteen years ago, I coordinated GOTV for Keith’s campaign, and I’ve seen firsthand that he understands that in order to win, we need to have better engagement and partnerships on the ground. That’s where elections in states and local communities have tremendous ripples and influence on the national agenda. Strong state and local parties need to be the foundation of a strong DNC.”
 
APALA Executive Director Gregory A. Cendana commented: “Keith is an organizer at heart, and he understands that all communities – from young people to rural folks to people of color – need to be politically and civically engaged at the grassroots level. At a very divisive moment in our history, Keith will be able to unite our diverse communities to tackle the hateful candidates, policies and rhetoric that will come from the right-wing. We are proud to support Keith’s campaign for DNC chair and look forward to continuing our work to build a more visionary and inclusive party and country.”
 
Congressman Keith Ellison currently represents the 5th district of Minnesota and was the only candidate for DNC chair to release an engagement plan for the AAPI community.

###

​Washington, DC – The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) commends the ten Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPIs) commissioners who have resigned from the President’s Advisory Commission on AAPIs in protest to the administration’s recent racist, hateful, and xenophobic policies. APALA issued the following statement from Gregory A. Cendana, APALA Executive Director and Executive Committee member of the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans.
 
“These ten commissioners have chosen the side of resistance and should be lauded. Their leadership and bravery to take a stand against the administration’s hateful policies and rhetoric reinforces the fact that this administration is not normal and is incredibly dangerous for the lives and freedom for not just AAPIs but all people of color. Our diverse communities – immigrants, refugees, Muslims, women, LGBTQ communities -- strengthen the fabric of our country, and I’m hopeful that more leaders will step up to resist and fight back against the fascism that’s ensuing.”
 
Read the full letter from the commissioners here. 

###

Last week, the Trump administration released three new executive orders signaling the administration’s intent to double down on “tough on crime” policies that have fueled mass incarceration and police violence for decades. The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) and the Southeast Asian Resource Action Center (SEARAC) strongly condemn the latest executive actions, which send the message that this administration intends to scapegoat and criminalize communities of color, including Southeast Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities, under the false pretenses of “public safety.”
 
The executive orders call for the attorney general, former Senator Jeff Sessions, to set up a “Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety,” and empower Sessions to report on whether existing laws adequately punishes individuals who commit crimes against law enforcement, opening the door to tougher sentencing laws.
 
The Trump administration has repeatedly tried to stoke fear among Americans by claiming that violent crime has surged when in fact, crime in the U.S. is at an all time low. The 2014 murder rate was lower than at any point during a 44-year period since 1965, and increased only slightly in 2015.[1] The orders also threaten to worsen relations between law enforcement and communities they serve as police could exploit their power over communities with little consequence. Further, it counter acts recent bipartisan efforts to address mass incarceration through sentencing reform.
 
“It’s not surprising that these orders came hand in hand with the newly confirmed Attorney General Jeff Sessions, whose track record shows his opposition to worker, immigrant and civil rights,” stated APALA National President Johanna Puno Hester, Assistant Executive Director of the United Domestic Workers, AFSCME Local 3930. “These ‘safety’ task forces that are to be created will make our communities less safe overall. We’re not fooled by these directives, and we will continue to resist, organize, and fight back.”
 
“What’s worrisome is the expansion of the police, military and prison state, where crimes--or those perceived to be--against law enforcement are more severely punished,” stated APALA Executive Director Gregory A. Cendana. “The executive orders that seek to prevent violence against law enforcement represents an effort to institutionalize the misguided ‘Blue Lives Matter’ and ‘All Lives Matter’ platforms and could have disastrous consequences for our families and friends who encounter police whose power over our bodies will go practically unchecked.”
 
Quyen Dinh, Executive Director of the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, added, “As a community of refugees, Cambodian, Laotian, and Vietnamese youth are subject to some of the highest arrest and incarceration rates in states such as California. Our community needs restorative justice policies that nurture trust between vulnerable communities and law enforcement. Instead, the Trump administration has chosen to drive a bigger wedge between them. We call on Congress to reject baseless fearmongering and get back to work finding solutions that will make our communities stronger through new models of restorative justice, police accountability, and community healing.”
 
For more information on our criminal justice work, please check out the “AAPIs Behind Bars: Exposing the School-to-Prison-to-Deportation Pipeline” by APALA, SEARAC, Advancing Justice Los Angeles, Asian Prisoner Support Committee, and the National Education Association.