Asian American Action Fund and AAA Fund of California Urge Gov. Newsom to Nominate an AAPI as California’s Next Attorney General
Asian American Action Fund and AAA Fund of California Urge Gov. Newsom to Nominate an AAPI as California’s Next Attorney General
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Gautam.Dutta@gmail.com
The Asian American Action (AAA) Fund and the Asian American Action Fund of California urge California Gov. Gavin Newsom to nominate an Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) as the Golden State’s next Attorney General.
In the sixteenth century, Filipino pioneers first reached California’s shores aboard Spanish galleons. Since then, AAPIs have enriched California’s life and culture in successive waves – including Chinese immigrants beginning with the Gold Rush, South Asian immigrants beginning in the nineteenth century, and Japanese immigrants beginning at the turn of the twentieth century.
Earlier this month, President-Elect Joe Biden nominated California Attorney General Xavier Becerra to serve as Secretary of Health and Human Services. In anticipation that AG Becerra will be confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Gov. Newsom is expected to nominate his successor as California Attorney General shortly.
The diverse AAPI community, which accounts for one-sixth of California’s residents, comprises the nation’s fastest growing ethnic community. Due to Donald Trump’s racist, xenophobic COVID-19 rhetoric, AAPIs have suffered from a troubling spate of hate crimes.
Economically, the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately affected the AAPI community. AAPIs own 26 percent of the nation’s food and accommodation-service businesses and 17 percent of the nation’s retail businesses – industries that have been devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic. On the health care front, although Filipino Americans account for 4 percent of the nation’s nurses, nearly one third of all nurses who have died from COVID-19 have been Filipino American.
The California Attorney General plays an outsize role in defending our civil rights and promoting the health, safety, and welfare of every Californian. A number of highly qualified AAPI elected officials would add a fresh voice and perspective to a key position of power.
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