WASHINGTON —?The National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA) issued the following statement on its Aug. 12 press conference with Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) Chairwoman Judy Chu, national AAPI community leaders, and community members locally impacted by COVID-19 calling for greater AAPI visibility ahead of the Democratic National Convention and the Republican National Convention:
“On Aug. 12, NCAPA hosted a press conference to highlight the urgent need to uplift the experiences and address the needs of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and ahead of the presidential nominating conventions. The pandemic has exacerbated numerous inequalities and disparities within our communities, and this week’s press conference also served to emphasize recommendations from the NCAPA 2020 policy platform that are more relevant than ever in working for solutions for those impacted by COVID-19.
“We were honored to have speakers from CAPAC, the Council of Korean Americans, the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development, the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, Empowering Pacific Islander Communities, and community members from Houston, Atlanta, Tustin, and San Francisco share their stories.
“We also join our speakers in demanding that our communities be seen and heard. AAPI elected officials, community leaders, and community members across the country have been working tirelessly — and sometimes thanklessly — in response to the pandemic that has hit Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, other communities of color, small businesses, immigrants, frontline workers, and low-income families especially hard.
“With the Democratic National Convention and Republican National Convention mere weeks away, we call on leaders and decision makers to recognize that AAPI communities, the fastest-growing demographic in the United States, are an integral part of our society and to act decisively to address our needs.”
A recording of the press conference is available on NCAPA’s Facebook page.