Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA)

Congratulations Trish Morita-Mullaney on her new book, "Lau v. Nichols and Chinese American Language Rights!"

This year is the 50th anniversary of the landmark Supreme Court case that expanded language rights. Learn more:

Lau V. Nichols and Chinese American Language Rights: The Sunrise and Sunset of Bilingual Education (Bilingual Education & Bilingualism #145) This book employs a narrative policy portraiture approach to recenter the stories of those involved in the Lau v. Nichols court case. It brings Chinese and Chinese American voices to the forefront, filling a significant gap in narration, representation and retrospective research within language poli...

If you're looking for something to do this weekend, come to Chinatown to check out AACRE's Edge on the Square art exhibit: "Walking Stories." Open through February 28, 2025, "Walking Stories" asks "in what ways do stories shape human connection, cross-generationally, personally and collectively?" https://www.edgeonthesquare.org/walking-stories

In it, you'll find artwork from artists across the Asian diaspora, including a zine that CAA collaborated on!

📍 Edge on the Square, 800 Grant Ave
📆 Wednesdays through Saturdays
⏰ 10am-4pm
Free!

Photos by Nordlys Photography

How do we carry, gift, receive, exchange 🌺stories? Check out the Walking Stories exhibition featuring Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality's Mia Nakano and Miko Lee and so many other wonderful 🎨 artists. Until Feb. 2025.

Thrilled to share this 📸photo exhibition centering language access from one of CAA's photographers, Joyce Xi. RSVP for the 8/16 🍾 opening reception ⬇️:

Art, Action, Change: YBCA Creative Corps Initiative - YBCA Discover the intersection of art, action, and community empowerment.

CAA signed on to this⚖️amicus in support of Dr. Yanping Chen who was racially profiled by the FBI for six years.

Dr. Chen filed a lawsuit against the govt for leaking docs to Fox News. A judge issued a favorable decision for Dr. Chen, but the case is now on appeal.

AALDEF files amicus brief in Chinese American scientist’s case against FBI over information leaked to media The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, a national organization founded in 1974, protects and promotes the civil rights of Asian Americans.

We take a moment to celebrate our wins! The amendments to the Language Access Ordinance go into effect immediately. With our partners at LAN, we will continue to work with the city to ensure the roll out is smooth, but the addition of Vietnamese will take a bit longer --- 2026! Stay tuned.

PODER (SF) Carecen SF African Advocacy Network Filipino Community Center AROC: Arab Resource & Organizing Center

"... no court ruling can change the fact that immigrants have always been parents and taxpayers."

It's time to end the political exclusion of immigrants! Read on for the California Local Voting Coalition's response to the recent Superior Court ruling: https://caasf.org/press-release/noncitizen-voting-ballot-measure-moves-forward-in-santa-ana-for-november-elections/

“I am not aware of a single incident of a noncitizen casting an illegal ballot in San Francisco,” David Chiu said. “These (voter fraud) claims are simply not based in reality...and I would also say they misunderstand the operational aspects of current voting programs that protect election integrity.”

Noncitizens banned from voting in federal elections but not some local races Despite widespread GOP claims that noncitizens are committing rampant voter fraud, federal law prohibits them from voting in presidential elections. Only a handful of cities allow noncitizens to vote, and even then just in local elections such as school board contests.

We are thrilled to see CPUC grant $10m to Sf Gov to expand their successful Fiber to Housing program to more than 5700 homes in Chinatown, Bayview & Tenderloin. Read more about CAA's work on digital equity in SF: https://bit.ly/3zW5lD7

https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/cpuc-internet-access-grants-32m-sf-oakland-fremont-last-mile/

CPUC grants $32M to San Francisco, Oakland and Fremont to expand internet access San Francisco, Oakland and Fremont were awarded a combined $32 million from the California Public Utilities Commission last week to expand internet access to underserved communities.

The 10th circuit vacated Dr. Franklin Tao’s conviction on the basis that the government failed to provide sufficient evidence. Dr. Tao was charged under Trump’s China Initiative. If Trump is reelected, many more will stand wrongfully accused simply because they are Chinese.

Court voids last conviction of Kansas researcher in case that started as Chinese espionage probe A federal appeals court has reversed the conviction of a researcher who was accused of hiding work he did in China while employed at the University of Kansas

As the 2024 election progresses, we can only expect to see more anti-Asian, anti-immigrant, and sinophobic scapegoating.

We call on the New York Post and media everywhere to hold themselves accountable!

Anti-Chinese conspiracies spike after Trump assassination attempt The New York Post falsely reported that the man who tried to kill Donald Trump was Chinese, setting off online conspiracy theories

The attorney who brought a lawsuit in Santa Ana is the same attorney who sued San Francisco to prevent immigrant parent voting. We prevailed and Santa Ana will, too!

CAA's Vin Pan speaks to the San Francisco Chronicle “There’s a sentiment that these people must have money if they can afford to pay for this trip, but it’s more that some are so desperate that they borrow from loan sharks to do this,” he said.

Why Chinese migrants are crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in large numbers The end of COVID-19 travel restrictions, circulation of migration routes on social media and conditions in China have driven an increase in Chinese migration

🎉 SUCCESS 🎉 CAA and other community members were able secure a budget win for employment services and stave off cuts to immigrant parent voting! Thank you to everyone for coming out to city hall to advocate for community services!

This week, CAA along with advocates from the AAPI Against Gun Violence coalition went to the White House to share perspectives about the gun violence crisis in the community and asked the Administration for concrete steps.

Learn more: https://aapiagainstgunviolence.org/

Spread the news! CAA's Economic Justice team is hosting free summer programming to help monolingual Chinese speakers apply for work, prep for interviews, and seek immigration legal services.

Free Job & Immigration Help at CAA’s Community Service Days (Summer 2024) Drop in to CAA's office or our outreach location during our monthly community service days to receive immigration and employment assistance! Appointments recommended, but not required. Masks recommended. For employment services, bring your ID and proof of income (e.g. pay stub). 欢迎参与

San Francisco's economy cannot recover by leaving immigrants behind!

We want all of San Francisco's residents to thrive. But drastic budget cuts inhibit "the ability of current and future immigrants from living meaningfully in San Francisco.”

Employment services at CAA bridge the language gap, and are crucial to allowing monolingual Chinese speakers to full participate in the City's economic vitality. San Francisco— restore the budget for community services!

EDIT: For clarification, CAA is the only limited English proficiency *specialized* job center for Chinese community members.

Join our Cantonese workshop to hear how we expanded language access for all including Vietnamese-speaking communities. Friday, 6/28 at 6pm PT. RSVP by 6/27 here: https://bit.ly/4crOdmG

"[Brown v. Board] said education is perhaps the most important right. Well, how could you have a right if the kids don't know what the heck is going on?"

We spoke to the advocates who fought for bilingual education in , 50 years ago ⬇️

Lau v Nichols — How Immigrant Students Won Bilingual Education The case Lau v. Nichols originated in San Francisco, where Chinese immigrant students who spoke little to no English were not receiving adequate language ass...

Biden's policy allowing undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens to adjust their status while simultaneously imposing a ban on asylum at the border once migrant numbers reach a certain threshold is deeply concerning.

This policy creates a false dilemma by forcing us to choose one group of immigrants at the expense of another.

By prioritizing undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens and limiting asylum opportunities for those fleeing persecution, the policy undermines the foundational principle of fairness in our immigration system. It is essential that we adopt comprehensive immigration reforms that do not pit one vulnerable group against another but instead uphold the rights and dignity of all individuals seeking safety."



Photo Credit: Bob Hsiang

Last Friday, we celebrated 55 years of fighting for justice at our annual fundraiser event!

Thank you to everyone who came out and support CAA's work in language access, immigrant rights, and education equity. We're so grateful for our community!

Celebration of Justice 55 — thank you! What a night to remember! Our Celebration of Justice gala was a dazzling success and we were so glad to see you and the many friends and supporters who renewed their commitment to justice. We were especially thrilled to celebrate this year’s honorees and pay special tribute to the 50th anniversar

Vietnamese is now a certified language joining Chinese, Spanish, and Filipino as languages the city is required to provide translation services for.

This is part of a package of amendments that passed closing the language services gap after many years of advocacy by the Language Access Network.

South of Market Community Action Network (SOMCAN) PODER (SF) Carecen SF African Advocacy Network Filipino Community Center AROC: Arab Resource & Organizing Center

San Francisco makes Vietnamese an official language Move by Board of Supervisors is part of a push to expand English-language services to nearly 6,800 primarily Vietnamese speakers in the city

Help us thank the SF Board of Supervisors for passing the language access amendments! This is a huge step towards ensuring SF’s commitment to providing vital city services in multiple languages.

Send a letter: https://bit.ly/4aTp0Aw 💌

Send a Letter to Thank City Hall for Strengthening Language Access

From San Diego to Florida, CAA has had a busy spring, fighting for language rights and Chinese migrants in so many different ways:

You’re Leading the Fight for Justice: Spring 2024 Newsletter Spring should be a celebratory time for students, who are finishing up their finals, preparing to graduate, and getting ready to walk with diplomas in hand. But in the last few months, we’ve seen campus administrators unnecessarily invoke law enforcement to violently respond to peaceful prot

CAA's Jose Ng would like to see two-way interpretation be the norm. “When you want community members to be able to fully participate in those meetings - full, bi-directional interpretation is best," Ng said.

Inadequate Language Services Leave Immigrants in the Dark at SF Public Meetings For immigrants and other San Francisco residents who speak little English, accessible and robust interpretation services are essential in order to understand what’s said at public meetings and communicate with officials. The city claims to have the strongest language-access policies in the nation,...