#365 12/1 Meeting; CACA President Kin Hui; Will Kim; Statistician Uproar; AI Talent/Prize +

In This Issue #365

·       2025/12/01 APA Justice Monthly Meeting | Giving Tuesday

·       Kin Yan Hui Elected National President of C.A.C.A.

·       Texas A&M Doctoral Student Will Kim Released from ICE

·       Uproar at Republican Push for Voluntary Census and Surveys

·       AI Race for Talent | Chen Institute and Science Prize

·       News and Activities for the Communities

2025/12/01 APA Justice Monthly Meeting | Giving Tuesday

The next APA Justice monthly meeting will be held on Monday, December 1, 2025, starting at 1:55 pm ET.In addition to updates from:

·       Judith Teruya, Executive Director, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC)

·       Joanna YangQing Derman, Program Director, Advancing Justice | AAJC

·       Gisela Perez Kusakawa, Executive Director, Asian American Scholar Forum (AASF)

We are honored by and welcome the following distinguished speakers: 

·       Kin Yan Hui, National President, Chinese American Citizens Alliance 

·       Patrick Toomey, Deputy Director, National Security Project, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)

·       Edgar Chen, Special Advisor, National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA) 

The virtual monthly meeting is by invitation only. It is closed to the press. If you wish to join, either one time or for future meetings, please contact one of the co-organizers of APA Justice - Steven Pei 白先慎, Vincent Wang 王文奎, and Jeremy Wu 胡善庆 - or send a message to contact@apajustice.org. 

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Giving Tuesday - Consider APA Justice

APA Justice has been advancing fairness, equity, and belonging for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders for the past 10 years. We identify emerging issues through coalition work, community engagement, and data insights. We educate policymakers and allies through media collaboration, an online resource hub, and regular briefings. And we mobilize communities to advocate for practical solutions and stronger civic participation.Your support strengthens civil rights protections, elevates AAPI voices, and helps build a more inclusive America. Now, as a powered by the Committee of 100 initiative, APA Justice invites you to make a tax-deductible contribution to sustain this work at: https://bit.ly/Donate2APAJustice.

Kin Yan Hui Elected National President of C.A.C.A.

The Chinese American Citizens Alliance (C.A.C.A.), founded in 1895 during the era of the Chinese Exclusion Act, is one of the nation’s oldest and most enduring civil rights organizations dedicated to protecting the rights, heritage, and dignity of Chinese Americans. With lodges across the country, C.A.C.A. promotes civic participation, youth development, community service, and advocacy against discrimination. For more than a century, it has played a vital role in elevating Chinese American voices and strengthening the broader Asian American community.This year, C.A.C.A. elected Kin Yan Hui as its National President. A longtime member and leader within the organization, Hui previously served as National Executive Vice President, National Vice President for Membership, and Past President of the San Antonio Lodge. He brings to the role deep experience in nonprofit governance, community engagement, and public service.Kin’s background includes more than 35 years as a civil servant with the U.S. Air Force, concluding his career as Chief Engineer for four Cyber Weapon Systems. In San Antonio, he continues to serve his community as the District 6 Zoning Commissioner and as a member of the Bexar County Civil Service Commission.Kin has accepted our invitation to speak at the next APA Justice monthly meeting on Monday, December 1, 2025.

Texas A&M Doctoral Student Will Kim Released from ICE 

On November 15, 2025,  Tae Heung “Will” Kim was released from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in Raymondville, TX, near the Mexican border. Will has lived in the United States for 35 years, since he was five, and is a green-card holder pursuing his doctorate degree at Texas A&M University, where he is researching a vaccine for Lyme disease.

When returning from a two-week trip to South Korea for his younger brother’s wedding, Will was detained by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at San Francisco International Airport on July 21. He was held in the airport’s “secondary inspection” rooms and slept in chairs with the lights on 24/7. Aside from a brief phone call, the only communication Will’s family had with him came through what they believe were secondhand text messages. Will was transferred from the airport to Florence, Arizona, under ICE custody around July 29, then to Raymondville, Texas, until his release.

Will was charged in 2011 with misdemeanor marijuana possession and completed community service. He later petitioned to have the case sealed from the public record. According to the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC), Will’s removal proceedings were terminated in October after prosecutors “failed to produce required court-ordered documents.” The case was ultimately dropped when the Department of Homeland Security did not appeal the termination.

Will’s case has drawn national attention not only from immigrant rights and civil rights advocates but also from academic and human rights communities, including the Committee on Human Rights of the National Academies, because it highlights concerns about the lack of due process and the detention of legal permanent residents for old, minor offenses. The Asian American Scholar Forum (AASF) called on immigration authorities shortly after Will’s detention to immediately provide due process, ensure his access to legal representation, and clarify the basis for his detention. The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) also issued a statement before Will’s release, noting that “critics argue his detention reflects a due-process problem: long-time legal residents being held without clear justification or access to a lawyer.”

“Collective action is powerful. Across the nation, people spoke up and took action for Will. He and his family have expressed shock and appreciation at the public’s outspoken support,” NAKASEC said in a statement. 

·       2025/11/17 AsAmNews: U.S. permanent resident released from ICE custody

·       2025/11/16 Houston Chronicle: Texas A&M doctoral student, green card holder released after months in immigration detention

·       2025/09/17 Battalion: ‘No person should have had to go through what Will went through’: Aggie researcher detained by ICE

·       2025/08/26 The EDU Ledger: Texas A&M Doctoral Student Remains in ICE Detention as Immigration Crackdown Spreads Fear Across Campuses

Uproar at Republican Push for Voluntary Census and Surveys

According to Science and WebProNews, Republican lawmakers are advancing multiple bills that would make participation in key U.S. Census Bureau surveys voluntary, triggering strong warnings from statisticians and data users who say the proposals would severely undermine the accuracy and reliability of the nation’s most important demographic datasets.Representative Greg Steube (R–FL), despite promoting American Community Survey (ACS) data on his own website, has introduced the Freedom from Government Surveys Act to eliminate penalties for nonresponse—effectively making the ACS optional. Senator James Risch (R–ID) and Senator Mike Lee (R–UT) have introduced companion measures in the Senate, while a pending House spending bill goes even further by making both the ACS and the decennial census voluntary and restricting the Census Bureau to a single follow-up outreach attempt.Supporters say they are protecting constituents from intrusive questions and government overreach. But demographers, statisticians, and former Census officials warn the legislation would devastate the agency’s ability to produce accurate, representative data used to guide over $1.5 trillion in federal funding and inform everything from infrastructure planning and school construction to business expansion and disaster response. One former Census official said a voluntary, limited-contact ACS “becomes almost a poll rather than an actual survey.”Evidence from past research backs these concerns. When the Census Bureau tested voluntary ACS participation before its 2005 launch, the results were so unrepresentative that nearly two-thirds of the population—208 million people—would have had unreliable data. Canada’s 2011 shift to a voluntary census similarly produced massive data gaps, forcing the government to reinstate a mandatory version in 2016.Further proposals target statistical privacy tools. A bill from Representative Andrew Clyde (R–GA) would eliminate differential privacy—used to protect respondent identity—despite experts warning that removing it would expose personal information in public datasets.The push comes amid broader political pressure on federal statistical agencies, with critics noting continued attempts to add a citizenship question, accelerate census timelines, or limit follow-up efforts—all moves that would disproportionately undercount immigrants, young people, rural residents, and lower-income households. Such shifts could reshape congressional representation and shift political power.Advocacy groups—including the American Statistical Association, the Census Project, and numerous former Census officials—are mobilizing to warn Congress that voluntary surveys would increase costs, reduce quality, and jeopardize data essential for evidence-based policymaking. Dr. Mark Calabria, newly appointed Chief U.S. Statistician at the White House noted that many lawmakers underestimate the value of federal data until it disappears.The fate of the proposals will unfold as Congress debates the 2026 spending bill, but experts are clear: “The only reliable data source,” one former Statistics Canada leader stressed, “is a mandatory survey, done properly.”

AI Race for Talent | Chen Institute and Science Prize

According to the New York Times on November 19, 2025, Chinese-born researchers play a central role in U.S. artificial intelligence development, even as political rhetoric increasingly casts China as a strategic rival. When Mark Zuckerberg announced Meta’s new Superintelligence Lab, all 11 researchers he highlighted were immigrants educated abroad, including seven born in China. Two major studies—the Paulson Institute’s earlier analysis and a new Carnegie Endowment report—show that Chinese-origin researchers consistently make up a significant share of the world’s top AI talent, and the overwhelming majority of those already working in the U.S. have remained at American universities and companies despite tightening immigration rules and rising anti-China sentiment.

Despite geopolitical tensions, collaboration between the U.S. and China in AI research remains extensive. A study by alphaXiv shows that since 2018, U.S.-China joint AI publications occur more frequently than collaborations between any other pair of countries. Major technology companies—including Meta, Microsoft, Apple, Google, Intel, and Salesforce—continue to publish widely cited papers with Chinese institutions. Meta alone received roughly 6,300 H-1B visa approvals this year, second only to Amazon, and insiders even joke that Mandarin is nearly as essential as coding languages inside Meta’s AI teams.

While concerns about espionage and data theft persist, experts argue that restricting Chinese talent would damage U.S. competitiveness far more than it would enhance security. Analysts warn that expanded Trump-era crackdowns on Chinese researchers could erode America’s global AI lead, especially as China builds its own world-class research ecosystem. Some Chinese scientists report increasing obstacles, including visa difficulties and fears of not being readmitted after travel. The tense climate has begun to affect workplaces as well, illustrated by a recent case in which an Anthropic researcher left the company after disagreeing with its public framing of China as a security threat.

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The Chen Institute and Science Magazine launched the "Chen Institute and Science Prize for AI Accelerated Research" in August 2024. This initiative aims to drive advancements in artificial intelligence that can expand scientific research. Young scientists from around the world are invited to submit AI-driven projects that demonstrate significant potential to improve research and lives.

The competition will award a Grand Prize of $30,000, with the winner's essay published in Science and an accompanying five-year AAAS membership. Additionally, up to two runners-up will receive $10,000 each, with their essays published on Science Online and the same membership benefits, promoting sustained engagement with scientific progress.

Visit and apply at https://bit.ly/3WTQq4K. The deadline is December 13, 2025.

News and Activities for the Communities

1. APA Justice Community Calendar

Upcoming Events:2025/11/25 Committee of 100 Conversations – “Recollections, Pioneers and Heroes” with Elaine Chao2025/12/01 Cook County Circuit Court Hearing - Estate of Jane Wu v Northwestern University2025/12/01 APA Justice Monthly Meeting2025/12/02 Serica Storytellers: The Presidents | David Wu & Frank Wu2025/12/08 Conversations, Recollections, Pioneers and Heroes: Alice YoungVisit https://bit.ly/3XD61qV for event details.

2. Serica Storytellers: The Presidents | David Wu & Frank Wu

WHAT: Serica Storytellers: The Presidents | David Wu & Frank WuWHEN: December 2, 2025, 6:30 - 8:00 pm ETWHERE: In-Person: Graduate School of Journalism, City University of New York (CUNY), 219 W 40th St 3rd floor, New York, NY 10018HOST: Serica InitiativeCo-Presenters:  Asian American / Asian Research Institute, CUNY; Asian American Studies Program at Hunter College, CUNYModerator: Joan Kaufman, Senior Director for Academic Programs for the Schwarzman Scholars ProgramPanelists:

·       David Wu, President, Baruch College, CUNY

·       Frank Wu, President, Queens College, CUNY

DESCRIPTION: As federal visa policies evolve, international students at CUNY campuses face growing uncertainty.  This timely conversation explores how student visa revocations are reshaping New York’s educational landscape.  The panel delves into how immigration policy shifts ripple across classrooms, immigrant communities, and the city’s public higher education system — and how institutions can better advocate for and support affected students.REGISTRATION: https://bit.ly/47RWYHn 

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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 new APA Justice website under development at www.apajusticetaskforce.org. We value your feedback. Please send your comments to contact@apajustice.org.