Community Events

SCCLA congratulates our 2020 SCCLA Scholarship and Fellowship awardees and thanks our generous donors for their contributions to the SCCLA Foundation, Inc. We held our inaugural virtual awards ceremony to celebrate and honor our awardees and donors. While we were not able to attend an in-person banquet, we are grateful for the opportunity to gather virtually for this important occasion.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1o7LljCKcq2V8pCY493a84P86cMU86epE/view?usp=sharing

The earth-shaking events that have characterized much of 2020 have underscored the importance of strong elected leadership in this country. The past year has ignited nationwide conversations about our country’s plans to protect our most vulnerable populations, our essential workers, our businesses, and our land and natural resources. These conversations carry an unusual imminence as they take position on debate stages and campaign trails, their topics being anything but abstract thought experiments, evoking a national sentiment that this is an especially consequential year for American voters in shaping the immediate future of our nation. For Asian Americans, this may also be a crucial year for asserting our position in American politics.

We are approaching an election season of record voter eligibility among Asian Americans. This year, Asian Americans are expected to comprise nearly five percent of eligible voters in the United States. Despite the fact that we are the fastest-growing racial group eligible to vote in the United States, and have been growing significantly for years, the American political system has historically overlooked Asian American voters. Politicians across the spectrum routinely ignore Asian Americans in their efforts to garner support, and the rhetorical choices of some reveal that they perceive no consequences to insulting, discriminating against, or even endangering members of the Asian American community. Since March, President Trump has frequently referred to the novel coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, as the “Chinese virus,” drawing an association between the virus and persons of Chinese descent that has unsurprisingly correlated to a surge of incidents of discrimination, vandalism, and violence directed at Asian Americans and APA-owned businesses. This past May, Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee introduced the SECURE CAMPUS Act, legislation that would prohibit Chinese nationals from receiving visas to pursue graduate or post-graduate studies in STEM fields, based on a gross generalization that many Chinese scholars studying in the United States are spies and an all-too-familiar chilling argument that the measure is in the interest of national security. Media coverage of American politics has also demonstrated an apathy towards Asian American voters, falling short in its acknowledgement of APAs in politics despite the historic achievements of Asian American candidates this election cycle. Democratic Party presidential candidate Andrew Yang was repeatedly excluded from fundraising and polling graphics displayed by major news outlets during his campaign, and reporters have ignored vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris’ South Asian roots when discussing her racial background. The erasure of Asian Americans from political discourse – and worse, the attacking of Asian Americans in political discourse – has been widely cited as a reason for low voter turnout among Asian Americans, as some read in it a message that Asian Americans are not welcome in the political process.

We write to remind you that as American citizens, it is your right to participate in the political process, and we urge you to exercise that right on November 3, 2020. We need not allow the failure of American politics to engage the Asian American community to become a reason for our own disenfranchisement. Nor do we as a community need to succumb to the obstacles that prevent many Asian Americans from voting, including a lack of language resources, voter purging practices, and antiquated voter registration policies. We encourage members of our community, if able and regardless of citizenship status, to partake in efforts to assist voting-eligible family members, friends, and neighbors with the voting process. A number of resources are available through the links provided by the organizations signed on to this letter and listed below.

We recognize that the Asian American community is broad and diverse, harboring multitudinous and differing values. We understand that each of us, or our ascendants, arrived in this country for unique reasons, that our experiences cannot be melded together and generalized. Our political leanings may differ, but the one thing we all have in common is that we are all American. We each have the power and responsibility to advance our country in the way we believe is best. Over eleven million Asian American voices can make their presence in this country known in this year’s election. All those voices together may just make a sound too loud to ignore.

https://customers.lacba.org/Interactive/Event_Display.aspx?EventKey=102920LAC

Please join SCCLA for a free CLE as we co-sponsor the FBA-LA’s program on “Nuts & Bolts of 1983 Civil Rights Litigation: What Lawyers Need to Know,” moderated by the Honorable Karen Stevenson, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Central District of California. Register at:

https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/2725211446622722574

SCCLA is co-sponsoring a free elimination of bias CLE this Thursday along with the Federal Bar Association – Los Angeles Chapter. This CLE is the first presentation in a “Race, Policing, and the Law” webinar series, focusing on the history of policing and racial justice (and, in many instances, injustice) in Los Angeles.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fGiIPrZ0qDXJhCg-QJQV91XMRL6oQHRt/view?usp=sharing

APABA's Judicial Pipeline Project (2020 Class) - Apply by June 8, 2020

APABA is now accepting applications for its 2020 Judicial Pipeline Project, an effort to:

• Identify and provide outreach to potential qualified candidates for administrative, trial, and appellate judicial offices in the state and federal systems;
• Assist and advise these candidates in the application and vetting process and the judicial election process, including establishment of a formal mentorship program involving APA judges; and
• Create and cultivate relationships to facilitate the appointment of APAs to the bench.

Among the Pipeline Project’s features:

• Confidential Judicial Mentor/Mentee Program: Candidates may have an opportunity to be paired with a judicial officer to discuss, among other things, the candidates' plans for the bench.
• Application Counseling: Candidates will work closely with APABA’s network of advisors to prepare the best possible judicial application.
• Endorsement Counseling: While participation in the project does not in any way guarantee that candidates will be endorsed by any organization, the Pipeline Project will advise candidates on obtaining community support for their applications to the extent possible.
• Post-Application Guidance: Candidates will be counseled on what to do after their applications for judicial officer positions are submitted.
• Interview Counseling: If a candidate’s name is submitted to the various vetting and rating organizations, the Pipeline Project will assist the candidate in preparing for interviews with those organizations.

APABA has hosted its Pipeline Project since 2016. Sister bar members who have been members of the California Bar for at least 10 years can apply HERE until June 8, 2020.

Questions? Contact Public Appointments and Judicial Endorsements Committee Chair Roger Hsieh.