Historical Background
After a series of innocent Chinese American scientists in academia, government and private industry were wrongly accused of espionage-related charges and then had their cases dropped by the Department of Justice without full explanation and accountability, a group of volunteers gathered to provide a platform and to connect concerned organizations and individuals with the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) in the Fall of 2015.
Organizations and individuals participate in this voluntary group share these fundamental beliefs:
Our Purpose
On an ongoing basis, the group of volunteers strive to:
After a series of innocent Chinese American scientists in academia, government and private industry were wrongly accused of espionage-related charges and then had their cases dropped by the Department of Justice without full explanation and accountability, a group of volunteers gathered to provide a platform and to connect concerned organizations and individuals with the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) in the Fall of 2015.
Organizations and individuals participate in this voluntary group share these fundamental beliefs:
- there has been historical exclusionary laws and internment of Asian Americans in violation of their constitutional rights and American values for political scapegoating
- there is lack of government transparency and explanation on the recent use of overzealous methods and patterns of xenophobic profiling against innocent Asian Americans
- there is impact and damage of these recent adverse actions within the Asian American community with respect to their standing as Americans and ability to serve their country
- there are responsibilities and obligations for Asian American and Pacific Islander elected officials and community leaders to voice and address concerns; raise public awareness and participation; hold the government accountable; and seek proper transparency and oversight to prevent future similar occurrences
Our Purpose
On an ongoing basis, the group of volunteers strive to:
- seek full explanation and remedies for the recent individual cases including Ms. Sherry Chen and Professor Xiaoxing Xi and make the wrongly accused whole
- seek independent investigations of the overzealous investigative and prosecutorial methods and profiling of innocent Asian Americans based on ethnicity, national origin and protected civil rights factors
- identify resources and opportunities to raise public awareness, educate and provide training about legal environment and risks, and inform about statistics and rights
- engage law enforcement and prosecutors in dialogue, training, and similar activities to promote understanding of Asian American culture and community and openness and transparency of government operations
- partner with like-minded organizations and individuals to voice Asian American concerns about law enforcement and advance the purpose of this group
- formulate and advocate for continuing oversight, policy, and best practices to ensure justice and equal rights for Asian Americans
- facilitate consensus and coalition-building on an issue-by-issue basis