Washington, DC – On Wednesday night, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump gave his speech outlining his ten top priorities on immigration reform, including building a wall on the country’s southern border, blocking funding for sanctuary cities, and ending President Obama’s executive orders providing administrative relief to undocumented immigrants. The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA) condemns the repulsive agenda Trump has outlined and continues to stand behind candidates and policies that lift us up as a whole and not divides us further.
 
“Trump’s plan is nonsensical, impractical, and most of all, xenophobic and racist. What we saw on Wednesday night was no different from the same xenophobic, racist, anti-immigrant, classist, white supremacist rhetoric that Trump has been spewing all along,” stated APALA National President Johanna Hester. “Deporting 11 million undocumented immigrants back to their home countries and implementing extreme vetting processes, including ideological testing, is fundamentally un-American, not to mention a waste of taxpayer money.”
 
“If Trump becomes president, he will undoubtedly act more like a dictator who instills fear and paranoia throughout our country,” added APALA Executive Director Gregory A. Cendana. “It really is alarming -- his plans to expand ICE and increase the number of deportation officers will not only encourage racial profiling of communities of color but also boost mass incarceration in prisons and detainment centers which are already increasingly privatized. What he proposes will only contribute further to a broken immigration system and a broken criminal justice system.”
 
“This country was built by and for immigrants – documented and undocumented – and Trump’s speech shows that he just doesn’t get it. He is too quick to belittle and distort the contributions of millions of Americans and overlooks the violence and brutality against our own communities by ordinary citizens, who are documented by the way,” continued Hester. 

APALA stands behind candidates who believe that we are stronger when we lift each other up, not by tearing us apart -- physically or ideologically. We remain committed to combatting the mass criminalization of communities of color and stand strongly against the corporate greed that fuels prisons and immigrant detention centers and imprisons our immigrant kinfolk. We will continue to work for an equitable economy alongside candidates and politicians who believe in leveling the playing field and promote cross racial solidarity and understanding.
 
Cendana stated: “As a nation, we need to start looking at these issues more intersectionally. Immigration affects so many people and communities of color; immigrants contribute millions of dollars to the economy; immigrants have families, children and a base of support here in the U.S. How is building a wall and ripping apart countless numbers of parents from their children a solution to this broken system? What Trump proposes caters to a white supremacist and conservative base, and we cannot – and will not – let votes go that way in November.” 

Washington, DC – On Thursday, May 13th, a massive fire broke out in the Kentex Manufacturing Factory in the Manila suburb of Valenzuela City, Philippines where 72 workers were killed. The fire erupted in the lower level of the footwear factory as a result of an explosion from a welder’s torch and shoe making chemicals. Workers frantically ran upstairs to escape the blaze but were trapped upstairs, leading to their disastrous deaths.

The tragic death of the Kentex Shoe Factory workers exemplifies the need for companies to provide safe working conditions for all workers around the world. The lack of fire safety equipment, the bars that surrounded the windows and the flammable materials throughout the factory were part of the dangerous working conditions. "From nail salon workers to those killed in the Kentex Factory in the Philippines, we need safer workplaces for ALL, in the U.S. and worldwide.” said Gregory Cendana, APALA National Executive Director. Cendana also participated in a labor delegation to Bangladesh last year to hear from Rana Plaza Factory collapse survivors, their families and other factory workers where unsafe work environments are common.

​The Philippine Department of Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz indicated that only 60% of businesses across the Philippines comply with government labor safety and health standards in 2014. “Profit driven companies and employers in third world countries like the Philippines often exploit workers by paying low wages while having unsafe working conditions,” said Johanna Puno Hester, APALA National President. “We stand with workers across the world in demanding safe working conditions for all and #Justice4KentexWorkers.”

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Washington D.C. – The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance National Executive Board issued the following statement after their board meeting:

The Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO, condemns the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS) for honoring Wal-Mart at their annual Gala.

APALA celebrates our community traditions during Asian Pacific Heritage Month, especially the contributions of Asian Pacific American working people. But Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest corporation and a fierce anti-union employer, represents corporate greed. Wal-Mart pays poverty wages, substandard benefits, and has a shameful record with regard to employment discrimination involving race and gender.

Wal-Mart has viciously attacked efforts to allow their workers to form and join unions. Wal-Mart has recently closed five Wal-Mart department stores where there were active campaigns among workers, including many workers of color, to organize for better wages and working conditions.

Wal-Mart is a global economic powerhouse that promotes the proliferation of sweatshops, violates labor and environmental standards, and is leading the race to the bottom in exploiting workers and contributing to world-wide poverty.

For APAICS to honor Wal-Mart is an insult to Asian Pacific American workers throughout the country, and the rich history of Asian Pacific American labor.

This is the 50th anniversary of the Delano Grape strike when Filipino farmworkers courageously led the fight to organize farm workers in California. APAICS is insulting the legacy of Filipino farmworkers, Chinese railroad workers, Hawaiian plantation workers, New York Chinatown garment workers, and millions of other Asian Pacific American workers who have built this country.

Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is a time to celebrate the tremendous contributions of the Asian Pacific American community. APAICS dishonors Asian Pacific American workers by honoring corporate greed, exploitation, and worker abuse.

​APALA National President Johanna Puno Hester added, "APALA values our partnerships with other Asian Pacific American organizations, and in that spirit, our representatives conveyed our concerns to APAICS leadership about their selection of Wal-Mart as an honoree this year. Let us be clear--we support the mission of APAICS to build the pipeline of elected officials and we look forward to engaging in a conversation about the role of corporate partnerships in the broader community."

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