"Asian Americans are the fastest growing population in the U.S., yet many mainstream surveys have routinely overlooked Asian American voters, particularly non-English-speaking Asian American voters," said Glenn D. Magpantay, Director of the Democracy Program at AALDEF. "When the news media reported on election returns and the vote by specific groups, the Asian American vote was not always reported, which has contributed to elected officials neglecting this politically active constituency."

AALDEF will send attorneys, law students, and community volunteers to states where there has been a surge in new Asian American voters, Asian language assistance is provided, or Asian Americans reported voting barriers or intimidation in recent elections.

In the 2008 elections, AALDEF polled almost 17,000 Asian American voters in eleven states and Washington, DC. For the 2012 elections, AALDEF will be conducting an exit poll in Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia.

AALDEF will also monitor the poll sites for compliance with the Voting Rights Act, including the provision of Asian-language ballots, interpreters, signs, and voting materials, which are required in certain districts. AALDEF will also monitor the application of voter identification and proof of citizenship laws that create discriminatory obstacles for Asian American voters and other voters of color.

"In past elections, Asian American voters have faced a series of barriers including racist remarks from poll workers, ballots mistranslating political parties, and identification requirements applied only to minority voters," said Margaret Fung, Executive Director. "We want to ensure that Asian Americans and all other American citizens can exercise their fundamental right to vote in this important election."

For further information, contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 x.217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

The case: Abigail Fisher, a white applicant, sued UT-Austin in 2008 after it rejected her undergraduate application. She alleges the admissions policy violates the 14th Amendment's Equal Protection Clause and federal civil rights statutes.

UT-Austin's admissions process: At UT-Austin, the majority (e.g., 86% in 2009) of freshman are admitted under the state's Top Ten Percent law -- a race-blind policy that guarantees admission to any public (and many private) high school senior in roughly the top 10% of his/her class. Following that, the remaining minority of students are admitted based on academic rankings, performance, and personal achievement index (which takes into account diversity, leadership experience, extracurricular activities and socio-economic status).

The law: In Grutter v. Bollinger (2003), the Supreme Court said that colleges could attain diversity by looking at race as one of many factors, so long as they did not set quotas or percentages based on race, in order to attract enough minority students so that minorities wouldn't feel isolated in college or like spokespeople for their race. UT-Austin's policy complies with these rules.

The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), which counts achieving educational equity and equal rights for all among its fundamental goals, supports the current affirmative action law. If the court changes the law and ends affirmative action in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, overall diversity at colleges and graduate schools would dramatically diminish across the country. Other Asian American groups, such as the Asian American Center for Advancing Justice, have also supported affirmative action in college admissions.

Some people claim that affirmative action hurts Asian American students. Here's why that is false:

First, many opponents of affirmative action have conflated discrimination against Asian American applicants, or negative action, with positive, or affirmative action. Negative action occurs when a university denies admittance to an Asian American applicant who would have been admitted if he/she was white. In the past, universities have used negative action against minorities to preserve the traditional white character of colleges. Today, negative action takes the form of legacy and donor admissions.

Second, among the 24 distinct Asian American ethnic groups, the range of educational attainment is significant. For example, 40% of Cambodians and Laotians in California haven't finished high school, twice the statewide rate. When affirmative action was banned in UC-Berkeley after Proposition 209, these Asian American subgroups, among others, were drastically underrepresented in the freshman class.

Third, Asian Americans overall continue to be underrepresented in various admissions programs. For example, after Proposition 209 banned affirmative action at UC-Berkeley, Asian enrollment fell in graduate disciplines (although white enrollment skyrocketed).

Fourth, the purpose of diversity is to benefit the entire community. Diversity helps all students develop as leaders and civic participants, and is necessary for breaking down racial stereotypes that Asian Americans face. In the higher education context in particular, classroom contact with students of various racial, ethnic, and cultural backgrounds is a necessary part of a complete education that will best prepare Asian American students for real world challenges.

Contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex.217
usehgal@aaldef.org

For further information and updates, please visit us on Facebook or follow @aaldef on Twitter.

After the City Council voted to increase fees on Chinatown properties by establishing a BID, despite the protests of property owners already crippled by the current recession, the Department of Finance held the same property owners responsible for thousands of dollars in BID fees for four months before it was even in place.

"We maintained from the start that the Chinatown property owners were being charged unlawfully for the BID," said Bethany Li, staff attorney at AALDEF. "The hundreds of thousands of dollars involved is a huge sum of money for small property and business owners. Only after these small property owners stood up for themselves did the City admit its mistake."

AALDEF sent a letter to the Department of Finance and the Chinatown BID Interim Board asking that the City rescind these unlawful, retroactive charges. Upon receiving no response, AALDEF prepared to take legal action on behalf of the Property Tax Payers' Association, a group formed to protect the rights of small property owners in Chinatown. On March 20, they held a press conference in a vacant Chinatown storefront on the need for corrective action. According to news reports, at least one BID-related official claimed there was no error.

On March 30, the Department of Small Business Services acknowledged that the fees were wrongfully charged and agreed to rescind them without a lawsuit. Property owners who paid the amount will be reimbursed, and those who have not paid will not be penalized until the City recalculates the fees in the next billing cycle.

"Considering the historic number of objections to the BID, there was an expectation that the BID would have enough oversight to prevent such wrongful charges," said Jan Lee, a Chinatown property owner, who was charged $2,200 in BID fees for his properties. "This lack of oversight is one of the reasons why we opposed the BID. Despite all the city officials involved, the burden of oversight is falling to us property owners who can least afford it."

The property owners have also raised the issue of whether the Chinatown BID Interim Board could vote to use future BID fees to reimburse the Chinatown Partnership Local Development Corporation, which claims to have spent money on BID services before the BID existed and before the BID board signed any contracts with outside entities. "The BID has already shown that it is mismanaging our money," said Irving Lee, a Chinatown property owner. "The BID is requiring us to be extremely vigilant in protecting ourselves from illegal charges."

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

• Bethany Li     212.966.5932 ex. 213    bli@aaldef.org

• Ujala Sehgal    646.207.1497    usehgal@aaldef.org

After the City Council voted to increase Chinatown property fees by establishing a BID over the protests of property owners already crippled by the current recession, the Department of Finance held the same property owners responsible for thousands of dollars in BID fees for months before it was even in place.

When AALDEF and the Property Tax Payers' Association, a group formed to protect the rights of small property owners in Chinatown, objected to the retroactive fees, according to news reports at least one BID official claimed there was no error.

In response to the property owners' persistent advocacy and AALDEF's resolve to take legal action on their behalf, the City has admitted that the fees were wrongfully imposed, and will be issuing a reimbursement.

"We maintained from the start that the Chinatown property owners were being charged unlawfully for the BID," said Bethany Li, staff attorney at AALDEF. "Because the property owners successfully stood up for themselves, the City admitted its mistake. We're glad that struggling small property and business owners will not have to bear the burden of illegal, retroactive fees."

Time:            11 am, Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Location:     19 Mott Street, New York, NY 10013

Speakers:    Bethany Li, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
                       Jan Lee, Chinatown property owner

Contact:
Bethany Li
Staff Attorney, AALDEF
212.966.5932 ext. 213
bli@aaldef.org

Ujala Sehgal
Communications Coordinator, AALDEF
(P) 212.966.5932 ext. 217
(C) 646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

The revision of the state-wide ELL education regulations, like the city-wide Corrective Action Plan, is a necessary and long overdue step for a state with one of the highest Asian immigrant populations in the country. The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) was invited to take part in a focus group with the State Education Department officials Commissioner and to submit formal comments on the most essential changes needed to improve education and opportunities for the state's often neglected ELL student population.

AALDEF's recommendations include:

• Prescreening for ELL status to prevent students being wrongfully assigned to schools without the right ELL resources.

• Creating the capacity for bilingual programs in a greater number of schools where enough students qualify for them.

• Providing graduation credit requirements that are achievable for ELL students within four years.

• Improving bilingual education and English as a Second Language content.

• Increasing transparency of ELL education programs.

"We're excited at the opportunity to improve regulation and enforcement of ELL educational rights," said AALDEF's Educational Equity Director Khin Mai Aung. "These revisions could also lead to addressing some of the violations that culminated in last fall's Corrective Action Plan for New York City."

Download our formal commentary [pdf]

Biswokarma, who now lives in New York City, was hired as a kitchen assistant at Masala Wok & Grill in July of 2011. He was required to live in isolated group housing with his co-workers, which included a basement space with extremely poor conditions that endangered his health. He chopped meat and vegetables, cooked, and cleaned for a minimum of 10 to 12 hours a day often without breaks, once for 21 days straight. Pathak and Malik even denied him leave to seek medical attention after he injured his hand with a kitchen knife.

Though Biswokarma had been promised a salary of at least $500 a week, Pathak and Malik gradually lowered his pay week by week, paying him as little as $100 a week and eventually paid him nothing at all. Because Masala Wok & Grill is located in Selden, a Suffolk County town located hours from New York City, Pathak and Malik essentially forced Biswokarma to choose between homelessness or working indefinitely for little or no pay.

"People must be free to work without being oppressed," said Biswokarma. "I want to speak out against the way I was treated. I am filing this complaint because I don't want other people to be entrapped by these restaurant owners." Biswokarma quit the restaurant at the end of October 2011, and approached organizers at Adhikaar to learn about his legal rights.

Biswokarma's complaint, filed on March 30th in New York Supreme Court, Suffolk County, alleges violations of both New York state and federal laws, including unpaid wages, minimum wage, overtime, and spread of hours, against Pathak, Malik, and Tonimil Inc., the corporate name of Masala Wok & Grill. His complaint further alleges fraud based upon the false representations that Pathak and Malik made while hiring and continuing to employ Biswokarma.

"We believe these restaurant owners intentionally lure vulnerable workers with false promises of dignified work, and then isolate them in remote locations to extract their labor," said AALDEF Attorney Shirley Lin. "That these defendants attempted to cheat a person into working for little more than a dollar an hour, and still refuse to pay Mr. Biswokarma his rightful wages, is unconscionable. They must be held accountable."

"Unfortunately, Mr. Biswokarma's experience is not unique," said Luna Ranjit, Executive Director of Adhikaar. "Adhikaar has worked with many workers who have been cheated of their wages to recover their hard-earned money. Often employers hold back a few weeks' worth of salary, with promises of paying in the near future, or give checks that bounce. Unable to recover the money after multiple attempts, some workers give up. Mr. Biswokarma is very courageous to speak up for his rights."

Download the complaint [pdf]

Workers interested in learning their legal rights should contact Adhikaar at 718.937.1117 or AALDEF at the AALDEF helpline at 888.406.1555.

For further information, contact:

• Ujala Sehgal, AALDEF, 646.207.1497, usehgal@aaldef.org

• Luna Ranjit, Adhikaar, 718.937.1117, luna@adhikaar.org

Rabin Kumar Biswokarma, who worked as a kitchen assistant, was required by the restaurant's owners to live an isolated existence in a shared housing unit with his other co-workers. He was paid as little as $100 a week for working 10 hours a day without breaks, and in some instances no pay at all. He was forced to sign documents regarding his pay under protest and to work without medical attention after a job injury.

Biswokarma is represented by the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF). His complaint alleges multiple violations of federal and state laws and fraud.

"People must be free to work without being oppressed," said Biswokarma. "I am filing this complaint because I don't want other people to be entrapped by these restaurant owners."

PRESS CONFERENCE INFORMATION

Time: 11 am on Monday, April 2

Place: AALDEF, 99 Hudson Street, 14th Fl. Classroom  (between Franklin & Duane Streets) #1 train to Franklin St. or #2/3 or A/C to Chambers St.

Speakers:  Rabin Kumar Biswokarma, Immigrant Worker and Plaintiff

         Shirley Lin, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund

         Luna Ranjit, Executive Director, Adhikaar

RSVP: Ujala Sehgal at 212-966-5932 x217 or usehgal@aaldef.org to reserve a seat

In response, last month the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) launched a mass Freedom of Information Law campaign -- GO FOIL YOURSELF -- that is helping community leaders, organizations, business owners, students, activists, and individuals find out if they have their own NYPD file - and what it contains.

"Individuals across the Northeast have contacted us about finding out whether the NYPD is spying on them," said Nermeen Arastu, staff attorney at AALDEF. "The reports about widespread secret surveillance have left many Muslims and non-Muslims wondering what they can do to create change and advocate for their rights. With GO FOIL YOURSELF, there can now be strength in numbers. If the NYPD is secretly collecting information on you, you have the right to request that information. The more requests that are filed, the stronger the message sent to the NYPD."

Are you ready to GO FOIL YOURSELF? Visit the GFY webpage for FAQs on how to file a FOIL and download blank FOIL templates to get started.

AALDEF would like to know about the results of your FOIL request:

Collecting the information from your FOIL will allow us to document the scope of the NYPD's secret snooping into the lives and lawful activities of the Muslim community. Our reports will only use summary data and anonymous anecdotal information and will not use your name or personal information without prior permission.

Go to the GFY webpage >

For further information, contact:

Nermeen Arastu
212.966.5932 ex. 207
narastu@aaldef.org

Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex. 217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

During the course of their employment at Jin Hua, the workers' wages fell below the state and federal legal minimum wage levels. TYT failed to pay the workers for several weeks, and then abruptly closed the restaurant and locked the workers out.

"In the current economic recession, it is not unusual for owners to close unprofitable restaurants. But that gives them no excuse to fail to pay their low-wage employees, who are often struggling far more than the owners," said Ken Kimerling, Legal Director at AALDEF.

In 2010, AALDEF filed a complaint on behalf of the workers to seek their unpaid wages and overtime pay. TYT responded to the lawsuit by saying it was not responsible, despite the fact that it had set up Jin Hua and hired the CEO to run the restaurant. TYT said that the workers could only seek money from the closed restaurant itself -- which had no money. The workers claimed that TYT was responsible for the restaurant and the corporation that ran it.

In an opinion on March 21, the court agreed with AALDEF and found that TYT and Jin Hua were operated as a single company. Its decision noted how Jin Hua neither established a separate board of directors nor held independent shareholder meetings. Moreover, TYT's own shareholders and officers managed different aspects of Jin Hua's business, and even paid the workers themselves in cash initially. The court held that both TYT and Jin Hua were jointly liable.

"Jin Hua was a separate corporation in name only," said Kimerling. "We're pleased the court recognized that TYT could not avoid paying workers who were in reality its own employees."

Download the court's decision [pdf]

Contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex.217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

Image: Paul Lowry/Flickr

In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, the groups summarize some of the gravest reports by the Associated Press of the racial profiling and surveillance of approximately 350 mosques, schools, businesses, and individuals  throughout the Northeast between 2005 and 2008, despite no evidence of criminal activity. The reports include the NYPD's use of anti-Muslim propaganda in cadet training and of informants and undercover agents in colleges to collect files containing Muslim American students' personal information.

In response to the increasing concerns that the NYPD's practices violate federal statutes and the constitutional rights of Muslim American citizens, such as their rights of equal protection of the law, free exercise of religion, and free association, 34 members of Congress requested a Justice Department inquiry into the NYPD's activities in December 2011. More recently, representatives from New Jersey have called on Attorney General Holder to investigate the NYPD's out-of-state surveillance activities.

"With the mounting evidence of these civil rights abuses, we urge the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division to investigate the NYPD's surveillance activities," said Nermeen Arastu, staff attorney at AALDEF. "The NYPD has extended its surveillance well outside of New York state, prompting members of Congress from New Jersey and elsewhere to ask for a federal investigation. This is now a national civil rights crisis, and the Justice Department must act accordingly."

Download the letter to Attorney General Holder >

Contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex.217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

AALDEF believes that federal immigration policy must adhere to basic human rights principles that reflect the realities of the nation and its residents, especially the millions of undocumented people who form the economic backbone of this country. As evident in our work, the needs of immigrants in the United States impact many policy areas and affect all aspects of family life - from economic justice for workers to affordable housing for families to education equity for students.

At our immigration clinics, undocumented students routinely approach us with questions not just about immigration issues but also about how to access higher education. We have recently begun working with Asian American students from New York and New Jersey who are launching a youth group and safe space for Asian American DREAMers. They tell us that Asian undocumented youth are often burdened by the model minority myth and therefore overlooked. Because they have been unable to legalize their status, one of the biggest issues that all of these students tell us about is their struggle to pay for college.

Many undocumented students in our communities came as children. Some were not even aware of their undocumented status until they began applying to college. Others grew up worrying about how they would pay for college because despite being able to get in, they cannot access financial aid and their families are unable to afford the tuition.

Our federal immigration policies have failed to meet the needs of these students and their families. New York DREAM legislation is critical in helping to fill this unmet need for the thousands of students who are seeking financial aid for higher education.

New York is already one of twelve states that allow undocumented students to qualify for in-state tuition for public colleges. Despite this important step, undocumented students continue to struggle to pay for college because they do not have equal opportunities to access financial aid. New York DREAM legislation will ensure all students in this state equal access to aid for higher education regardless of their immigration status.

Undocumented youth represent an abundance of potential for our country and their families. In the absence of federal solutions to fix our broken immigration system, New York DREAM legislation helps to address the many needs of thousands of undocumented students in this state and their families.

Bethany Y. Li
Staff Attorney
212-966-5932, ext. 213
bli@aaldef.org'

New York and New Jersey youth are launching a youth group for Asian American/Pacific Islander DREAMers with AALDEF. Anyone interested in being part of this initiative should contact info@aaldef.org.

Image: Long Island Wins/Flickr

"The new Congressional redistricting map is a significant achievement in protecting the voting rights of the growing Asian American voting population in New York State and providing them equal representation," said Jerry Vattamala, staff attorney at the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF).

AALDEF has been at the forefront of advocating for the Asian American community in the Congressional redistricting process, including drafting and submitting its own redistricting proposal, the Unity Map, in conjunction with a multiracial coalition of civil rights groups, as well as filing a complaint-in-intervention on behalf of Asian American voters in Favors v. Cuomo. (For a summary of AALDEF's recent advocacy in the Congressional redistricting process, see below.)

"We have fought for the voting rights of Asian Americans throughout every step of the Congressional redistricting process, and we are pleased that the new map takes into account our advocacy," said Vattamala.

Asian American Representation Under the New Congressional Redistricting Map

Under the new Congressional map, District 6 (Asian VAP 37.9%*) corresponds to AALDEF's Unity Map by retaining the Asian American community in Queens (in Flushing/Bayside, Elmhurst and Briarwood/Jamaica Hills) within one district. After the incumbent representative for the District 6 Congressional seat announced last week that he will not run, District 6 is now an open congressional seat for the 2012 elections.

"There is now an open Congressional seat in Queens with a significant Asian American population, which provides a tremendous opportunity for Asian Americans in New York to have their interests represented in Congress," said Vattamala.

Because of the significant Asian American population, poll sites in Queens (where District 6 is located) are required under Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act to provide voting language assistance and bilingual ballots in Chinese, Korean, and, since the 2010 Census, Asian Indian.

"Given the expected Asian American turnout for the primary and general election, it is imperative that language assistance be provided in the designated languages," said Vattamala.

Apart from District 6, the following Congressional districts likewise adhere to AALDEF's recommendations with regard to keeping Asian American communities together:

• District 7 (Asian VAP 19.8%) likewise adheres to the Unity Map by keeping the community of interest in Manhattan's Chinatown and Brooklyn's Sunset Park within one district.

• District 14 (Asian VAP 16.1%) retains the Asian American community of interest in Jackson Heights and Woodside, Queens within one district.

• District 5 (Asian VAP 11.5%) retains the Asian American community of interest in Richmond Hill/South Ozone Park within one district.

Timeline: AALDEF's Recent Advocacy in the Congressional Redistricting Process

December 21, 2011 -- AALDEF, LatinoJustice PRLDEF, National Institute for Latino Policy (NILP), and the Center for Law and Social Justice (CLSJ) of Medgar Evers College submit their Congressional Unity Map proposal for protecting the voting rights of Blacks, Latinos, and Asian Americans to the New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment (LATFOR).

December 28, 2011 -- AALDEF and pro bono counsel Kaye Scholer LLP file a complaint-in-intervention on behalf of four Asian American voters in the congressional redistricting case Favors v. Cuomo.

February 13, 2012 - District judge rules in favor of AALDEF's complaint-in-intervention in Favors v. Cuomo.

February 29, 2012 - AALDEF submits its Asian American Neighborhood Boundaries, Communities of Interest Surveys for New York City, Submission Report, and Congressional Unity Map proposal to Federal Magistrate Judge Mann, who is charged with drawing the Congressional redistricting map.

March 2, 2012 - AALDEF submits commentary on alternate Congressional redistricting proposals submitted to Federal Court.

March 5, 2012 - AALDEF testifies at first public hearing in Favors v. Cuomo, urging the court to take into account Asian American neighborhood boundaries in New York City when drawing new district lines.

March 5, 2012 - Federal Magistrate Judge Mann releases the court's proposed Congressional redistricting plan.

March 15, 2012 - AALDEF testifies at second public hearing in Favors v. Cuomo on proposed Congressional redistricting plan.

March 19, 2012 - Three judge panel in Favors v. Cuomo releases new Congressional map.

**Percentages are from the Department of Justice on Voting Age Population (VAP).

Contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex.217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

Last year, the City Council voted to require property owners in Chinatown to pay additional fees by creating a Business Improvement District (BID), despite vigorous protests from property owners that the BID fees would put them out of business and lead to increased gentrification of their community.

Now that the Chinatown BID is in place, the Department of Finance has charged the same property owners fees for being within BID boundaries for months before the BID even existed. Property owners were charged fees on their property tax statements for the full fiscal year of 2011-2012, even though the Chinatown BID did not exist until January 31, 2012.

"Chinatown property owners should not be retroactively charged a period of time for an entity that did not even exist until just a month and a half ago. The Department of Finance must take immediate corrective action," said Bethany Li of AALDEF, which is representing the Property Tax Payers Association, a group formed to protect the rights of small property owners in Chinatown.

"Hundreds of property owners objected to the BID and now the City is charging us for something we didn't want, for a period before the BID even existed." said Jan Lee, a property owner in Chinatown.

AALDEF is prepared to file a lawsuit if the Department of Finance does not correct the unlawful assessment for the Chinatown BID.

Event:      Press Conference by AALDEF and the Property Tax Payers' Association Calling for the NYC Department of Finance to Adjust Illegal Fees

Speakers:      Bethany Li, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund
                       Jan Lee, Chinatown property owner
                       Dean Fong, Chinatown property owner

Time:              11 am, Tuesday, March 20

Location:       19 Mott Street, New York, NY 10013

Please RSVP to Ujala Sehgal at 212-966-5932 ext. 217 or usehgal@aaldef.org.

Contact:
Bethany Li
Staff Attorney, AALDEF
212.966.5932 ext. 213
bli@aaldef.org

Ujala Sehgal
Communications Coordinator, AALDEF
212.966.5932 ext. 217
usehgal@aaldef.org

The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), founded in 1974, is a national organization that protects and promotes the civil rights of Asian Americans. By combining litigation, advocacy, education, and organizing, AALDEF works with Asian American communities across the country to secure human rights for all.

"The proposed district lines are a positive development, since the court's plan largely keeps Asian American communities together," said Jerry Vattamala, staff attorney at the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF). "We are glad that the court acknowledged the voting rights concerns of New York's fast-growing Asian American community in the redistricting process."

AALDEF submitted the Unity Map, its redistricting plan to protect the voting rights of Asian Americans and other communities of color, to Special Master Mann, including detailed neighborhood maps, ethnic data, and communities of interest surveys.

In addition, AALDEF submitted formal commentary on alternative plans proposed by other civic organizations and legislative parties. At yesterday's hearing in Favors v. Cuomo, AALDEF urged the court to take into account Asian American neighborhood boundaries in New York City when drawing new district lines.

Under the Special Master's congressional redistricting proposal:

• Proposed District 6 (Asian VAP 37.9%*) corresponds to AALDEF's Unity Map by retaining the Asian American community in Queens (in Flushing/Bayside, Elmhurst and Briarwood/Jamaica Hills) within one district.

• Proposed District 7 (Asian VAP 19.8%) likewise adheres to the Unity Map by keeping the community of interest in Manhattan's Chinatown and Brooklyn's Sunset Park within one district.

• Proposed District 14 (Asian VAP 16.1%) retains the Asian American community of interest in Jackson Heights and Woodside, Queens within one district.

• Proposed District 5 (Asian VAP 11.5%) retains the Asian American community of interest in Richmond Hill/South Ozone Park within one district.

"In particular, we note the Special Master's proposal is consistent with the Eastern District's precedent of recognizing that Sunset Park and Chinatown are a single community of interest," said Vattamala. "This was first affirmed by this court in 1997 in Diaz v. Silver, then in 2002 in Rodriguez v. Pataki, and now, in 2012, in Favors v. Cuomo."

View AALDEF's federal court submission >

Download AALDEF's response to alternate submitted proposals [pdf]

*Percentages below are from the Department of Justice on Voting Age Population (VAP)

Contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex.217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

Pema Sherpa, a Nepali immigrant nail salon worker, became acquainted with AALDEF through her membership in Adhikaar, a Woodside-based human rights group, where she is actively involved in the Nail Salon Campaign. Last fall, Sherpa consulted AALDEF regarding the derogatory remarks and retaliation she faced in a Manhattan nail salon. There, the Nepali and Korean immigrant employees were denied sufficient time to eat, and when they did, were forced to eat in the salon's waxing room. The salon owner would make ethnically disparaging remarks toward Sherpa. Even though she was working 10 1/2 hours a day, Sherpa received no overtime, and she and her co-workers were obligated to "buy" basic salon tools from the employer at grossly inflated prices. When Sherpa stood up to the owner one day and objected to the insults and work conditions, the owner responded with violence, shoving her and spraying an aerosol at her head while lashing out. Sherpa feared for her safety. The next day, the owner retaliated again, firing her.

AALDEF advised Sherpa that she was entitled to legal recourse. She discovered that she had been denied overtime pay, and that the tools she purchased were in fact illegal salary deductions. "Once Ms. Sherpa became aware of her rights, she was determined to prevent the nail salon owner from abusing other workers," said AALDEF Staff Attorney Shirley Lin. "She bravely chose to hold the owner to account."

AALDEF confronted the salon owner last December on Sherpa's behalf, threatening legal action through a demand letter. On February 28, the parties executed a settlement agreement.

To her friends and colleagues who face similar challenges, Sherpa said, "Sisters at nail salons, if you are working and are mistreated, you can take action. I did. I am still working at a nail salon, and I now give advice to other sisters."

Earlier in February, AALDEF also negotiated a $7,000 settlement for a Chinese immigrant hotel housekeeper from a Days Inn Hotel franchise in Parsippany, New Jersey. For six months, "Ms. Lee" (not her real name) was required to work up to 14 hours a day, 12 days at a time cleaning rooms, but did not receive proper overtime pay. Her protests against the unlawful treatment went ignored. After the intolerably long hours forced her to quit, "Ms. Lee" sought legal advice from AALDEF.

According to Lin, low-wage immigrant workers like "Ms. Lee" are denied their rightful overtime wages when employers refuse to keep an accurate count of the hours they require their staff to work. "What we've seen is that underpayment of overtime goes virtually hand-in-hand with an employer's failure to accurately keep records of a worker's schedule, which the law requires without exception," said Lin.

In addition, on February 9th, three former kitchen workers of You Chun Restaurant, a Palisades Park, New Jersey noodle restaurant, reached an agreement with the restaurant's owner to settle the lawsuit AALDEF brought on their behalf. Ms. Cui and Ms. Jiang, both ethnic Korean-Chinese immigrants, and Mr. Tamay, a Latino immigrant, had collectively worked at the restaurant for nearly 15 years, putting in at least 72- to 80-hour weeks, six days a week. They alleged that the restaurant and its owner owed them hundreds of thousands of dollars in unpaid wages, minimum wages, overtime, and liquidated damages. AALDEF commenced the action, Cui v. You Chun Palisades Corporation, last September in New Jersey federal court.

"Although they faced considerable pressures, our clients never gave up," said Lin. "This victory has vindicated the considerable time and effort they devoted to advancing their case to court, and to supporting one another since their first day at the restaurant. This success is a direct result of their incredible strength and resolve. We are confident their story will inspire other workers who stand up for their rights."

Contact:
Shirley Lin
212.966.5932 ex. 220
slin@aaldef.org

Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex. 217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

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The Unity Map was drawn in collaboration with LatinoJustice PRLDEF, the National Institute for Latino Policy (NILP), and the Center for Law and Social Justice (CLSJ) of Medgar Evers College. AALDEF submitted the proposed Congressional plan under the Unity Map to the New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment (LATFOR) in late 2011.

AALDEF and pro bono counsel Kaye Scholer are representing Asian American voters who intervened in a lawsuit asking the Brooklyn federal court to draw new Congressional, State Assembly, and State Senate districts, because of the state legislature's failure to adopt its plan in time for the 2012 primary elections.

"Now that the federal court is developing a new Congressional redistricting plan for New York, it is of utmost importance that our Unity Map proposal -- which provides fair representation for Asian Americans and other communities of color -- be formally considered by the Special Master," said AALDEF staff attorney Jerry Vattamala. He emphasized: "The voting rights of Asian Americans and other communities of color must be taken into account at every step of the process."

In its submission to the Special Master, AALDEF commented on Unity Map Congressional District 5 (Flushing/Bayside, Queens Village/Bellerose/Floral Park/Glen Oaks and Briarwood/Jamaica Hills in Queens) and District 12 (Chinatown/ Sunset Park), which would keep Asian American communities of interest together within single districts.

As of the Feb. 29 deadline, other Congressional plans have been submitted to the court by other parties. AALDEF will be reviewing and submitting commentary on these alternate plans by the Friday, March 2 midnight deadline.

Download AALDEF's submission [pdf]:
Submission to Magistrate Judge
Attachment A
Attachment B
Attachment C
Attachment D
Attachment E

Contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex.217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

For updates, please check our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter.

Since August, 2011, the Associated Press has revealed that the NYPD built secret programs with help from the CIA to monitor Muslims at the places where they eat, shop, and pray. In 2012, the New York Times reported that NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly attempted to cover up his role in an anti-Muslim propaganda film that was used to train nearly 1500 NYPD officers. More recently, the Associated Press reported that the NYPD conducted surveillance of Sh'ia mosques throughout the Northeast, visited websites and forums of Muslim student associations at out-of-state colleges, and attended a white-water rafting trip with 18 Muslim students from the City College of New York.

"Despite reports of extensive NYPD infringement on the civil rights of Muslim Americans, very little information is publicly available regarding how the NYPD funds these programs," said Nermeen Arastu, staff attorney with AALDEF. "If the NYPD is violating its operating rules and the FBI guidelines it supposedly follows through racial and religious profiling, we deserve to know how much of our taxpayer money is being used to do so."

AALDEF has submitted FOIL requests to the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services as well as to the Office of the State Comptroller. Additionally, AALDEF has submit Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to the federal Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) regarding funds dispersed to New York City. For example, New York City planned to use $24.3 million in federal homeland security grants to pay overtime to its police departments in 2011.

"In the past, federal agencies like FEMA neglected to ask the NYPD to demonstrate what, if any, benefits resulted from its use of federal grants," said Arastu. "Now, considering the NYPD's duplicity about its operations and the resultant distrust these actions have fostered in the Muslim American community, the time of zero accountability and transparency must end. We deserve to know how our taxpayer dollars are being spent."

Download the FOIL and FOIA requests:
New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services
Office of the State Comptroller
Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General
Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency

Has the NYPD Been Spying on You?

You have a right to know if you, your business, or mosque were amongst the thousands subject to the NYPD's overbroad and bigoted surveillance. Through New York's Freedom of Information Law (FOIL), you can request NYPD's file on yourself -- and AALDEF can help. AALDEF has provided FAQs and templates that will help you submit your own FOIL, and we would like to hear what you find out so we can take action. (Note: AALDEF will only use summary data and anonymous anecdotal information. AALDEF will not use your name or personal information without prior permission.)

Contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932 ex.217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org

AALDEF in turn extends an offer to meet with the editorial and production staff of ESPN to educate and assist in establishing procedures to prevent racism or stereotyping of Asian Americans in any future coverage.

This ESPN headline followed one day after MSG, owner of the Knicks, aired a racist image of Jeremy Lin popping out of a fortune cookie, and after Fox Sports Columnist Jason Whitlock apologized for his offensive tweet about Jeremy Lin. It appeared three days after an ESPN anchor used the exact same phrase "Chink in the Armor" on air in an interview about Jeremy Lin.

The time for apologies is over. The media and the general public must understand that racist language and stereotypes used to describe Jeremy Lin are an insult to all Asian Americans, and no one should tolerate their use.

Contact:
Ujala Sehgal
212.966.5932. ex.217
646.207.1497
usehgal@aaldef.org