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Issue: 1183 Date: 4/25/2013
Become A Fan, Like St. Louis Chinese American News
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Immigration Reform, Civil Rights and AARP
OCA St. Louis hosted the 2nd National Board Meeting |
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| (L-R) Dr. George Wu, OCA St. Louis board member, Sharon Wong, OCA National President and Thong Tarm, OCA St. Louis President |
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Thong TarmOCA St. Louis President
On the weekend of April 20th, 2013 OCA (Organization of Chinese Americans) St. Louis hosted the 2nd National Board Meeting. Leaders from over 40 different cities from across the country came to the metro area to discuss important advocacy issues that are impacting the communities. Here are some of the issues we face:
1) Immigration Reform. OCA is encouraged by the newly introduced S. 744, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013, that seeks to overhaul the country's broken immigration system.
"We are pleased by the progress that has been made in finding a solution to our broken immigration system that has forced millions to live in the shadows and be separated from their families for decades," says Sharon M. Wong, OCA National President. "Our community must come together at this critical moment to push through a common sense bill that achieves our needs as a community."
Immigration is an important issue to Asian Pacific Islanders (APIs), as over 1.8 million of the community's family members are stuck in the visa backlogs waiting to be reunited with their loved ones, nearly 70 percent of APIs come to the United States through family-based visas, and about 1.3 million of APIs are undocumented.
Within the bill, the proposed language attempts to address many key areas surrounding the immigration reform debate. We are pleased that the bill has fair and realistic guidelines for DREAMers to pursue citizenship, strong protection of immigrant workers' rights, and eliminates the family backlog within a 10 year timeline. However, OCA is deeply concerned with several provisions that ignore several key components that are crucial to the APA community:
In regards to family reunification, the current drafted legislation caps the adult children category to those under the age of 31 as well as eliminates the "F4" visa category that enables citizens to sponsor their siblings. It is important that any final legislation include these classifications to ensure a humane and family based immigration system.The bill also omits the recognition of LGBT couples and families from the family definition category. Such an omission neglects the rights of same-sex couples as clear discrimination based on sexual orientation contrary to the values of our country. While significant language has been included to prevent profiling on the basis of race and ethnicity in deportation and detention, little action is proposed to ensure that all individuals are ensured a fair and decent trial by judge.Even though a pathway to citizenship for the 11.5 million undocumented individuals is included in the proposed legislation, the timeline for citizenship is extremely long, tenuous, and cost intensive for aspiring Americans. We strongly recommend an accelerated timeline for individuals to achieve their American dream.
"While we are encouraged by the bipartisan efforts that have been put forth by the Senate 𡛓ang of 8,' we cannot compromise our values as a community," says Tom Hayashi, OCA Executive Director. "We look forward to working with Congress to ensure that all APIs are included in the conversation around this significant issue."
OCA urges members of Congress to work together to take a more inclusive approach to ensure that we fix our immigration system that is attuned to our family values, economic opportunities, and a moral perspective for all aspiring Americans.
2) Our civil rights fellow Kendall Kosai is working on the military hazing situation that led to the death of private Danny Chen. We are continuing to seek justice from the military hazing. A petition has been created demanding the separation from the Army of 4 soldiers charged in connection to the death of Private Danny Chen. Co-sponsored by the JACL, AAJC, and OCA, the petition seeks to demonstrate the community's groundswell support against hazing practices against men and women in uniform. To sign the petition, click HERE.
3) AARP and OCA are building a partnership to assist senior citizens in the community. It is through this effort that this chapter is able to offer all our members 50 yrs and older the opportunity for a one year complimentary membership to AARP. Every person that joins, the organization will donate a percentage of funds to OCA's programs. We encourage all those who want to help out the community to participate. AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that helps people turn their goals and dreams into real possibilities, strengthens communities and fights for the issues that matter most to families such as healthcare, employment security and retirement planning.
OCA is committed to empower and engage our members and other folks in the local area to step up and voice your opinions. We need you to get involve with civic leadership on social issues that are important for the seniors, young professionals, and entrepreneurs in this country. It is important to know that we should not only talk about having events and programs. We need to be involved in the school boards, the advisory boards of community based organizations, and government committees to help the local area. You do not need to be an expert; all it takes is having the time and passion to share your experiences and stories. OCA encourages people from all types of background to engage with the folks who want to be part of it. If you do not know where to start, contact us via email info@oca-stl.org or through our website. After all, this will impact your way of making a living, your family, and your life.
About us:
OCA - Asian Pacific American Advocates, is a national organization dedicated to advancing the social, political, and economic well-being of Asian Pacific Americans in the United States.
Exchange Ideas - It is non-partisan, non-religious, non-territorial organizations, which means the members of OCA, are from all walks of life. Our members include engineers, doctors, lawyers, scientists, software developers, professors, managers, restaurant owners, small business operators, etc. This is the perfect organization for you to network with other people with the same desire to be free and equal.
Education - We believe that education is the first step toward empowerment. We will conduct educational programs based on the community needs. We typically announce our programs through community newspapers, social media, and our website.
Being part of OCA is not about building your resume or ego, we are a team of volunteers working together to make a difference for the Asian Pacific Americans living in the Greater Saint Louis area and across the United States of America.
This year we will be celebrating our 40th anniversary being in the community. Come join us to learn what we have planned for this year and be part of the growing movement!
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