#296 APA Justice Applauds New CAPAC Leadership

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEDecember 5, 2024

APA Justice Applauds New CAPAC Leadership

On December 4, 2024, the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) announced its leadership for the 119th Congress. Rep. Judy Chu (CA-28) transitions to Chair Emerita. The newly elected leadership includes Rep. Grace Meng (NY-06) as Chair, Rep. Mark Takano (CA-39) as First Vice-Chair, Rep. Jill Tokuda (HI-02) as Second Vice-Chair, Rep. Ami Bera, M.D. (CA-06) as Whip, and Rep.-elect Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10) as Freshman Representative.APA Justice applauds CAPAC for electing a new leadership team committed to representing the voice of the Asian Pacific American community and building on the remarkable legacy established under the leadership of Congresswoman Judy Chu, the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress. APA Justice was formed in fall 2015 in response to Chair Chu’s call to build a platform to connect members of Congress, concerned organizations and individuals in wake of the troubling trend of innocent Asian Pacific Americans being unjustly accused of espionage-related charges. With CAPAC’s support under Chair Chu’s leadership, APA Justice played a crucial role in helping achieve the historic settlement for Chinese American scientist Sherry Chen with the Departments of Commerce and Justice, and end the government’s misguided “China Initiative”, which had disproportionately targeted Asian Americans and academic communities, harming academic freedom and open science.We extend our heartfelt congratulations to Congresswoman Grace Meng on her election as the next CAPAC Chair. As the first Asian American elected to Congress from New York, Rep. Meng has been instrumental in advancing CAPAC’s mission. She has tirelessly championed issues vital to the Asian Pacific American community, particularly in combating racial bias and hate directed toward Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. Rep. Meng, a regular speaker at APA Justice’s monthly meetings, has shared insights on her groundbreaking work, including the passage of the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act and the Commission to Study the Potential Creation of a National Museum of Asian Pacific American History and Culture Act. She has been a steadfast supporter of APA Justice’s mission and initiatives.We also congratulate Rep. Mark Takano, Rep. Jill Tokuda, Rep. Ami Bera, and Rep.-elect Suhas Subramanyam on their election to CAPAC’s new leadership team. As we navigate unprecedented challenges in this critical moment in history, we look forward to continuing our collaboration with CAPAC to address social justice and civil rights issues impacting the Asian Pacific American community and to ensure government accountability. 

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APA Justice Task Force is a non-partisan platform to build a sustainable ecosystem that addresses racial profiling concerns and to facilitate, inform, and advocate on selected issues related to justice and fairness for the Asian Pacific American community. For more information, please refer to the APA Justice website at www.apajusticetaskforce.org.As part of its continuing migration to a new website under construction, we have moved the Newsletter webpage to www.apajusticetaskforce.org/newsletters.  Content of the existing website will remain, but it will no longer be updated. We value your feedback about the new web page. Please send your comments to contact@apajustice.org.