Life is amazing! And super busy! I haven't posted in awhile, but that's because I've been pre-occupied with blogging up a storm as a Political Blogger at
Hyphen magazine. I've been covering stories for over a year now, but have also been writing a bunch of guest blogs for other sites. So that's been taking up a lot of brain space.
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| Man, it's a jungle in there |
Apparently though, some people actually read this thing, so I figure I'd better get up on putting on new content. There's always LOTS to talk about (especially when I'm involved). Also I got married in July, it was a grand Bangla-dorian (Bengali/Salvadoran) wedding and I should totally write about it...yea will get on that.
In the meanwhile, here is the link to my Hyphen posts:
http://www.hyphenmagazine.com/blog/nadia-hussain
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| Yea Hyphen is awesome |
and I am cross-posting my latest post below. Have been working on immigration issues for years, and will be focusing more on the topic now that I am a new member of the national governing board of the
National Asian Women's Political Forum (NAPAWF), which may have excited me more than my wedding ( I know what a loser, right?).
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| Yay NAPAWF Board pic in sunny Arizona! |
So yea been covering immigration, especially regarding Comprehensive Immigration Reform lately. So please check out my articles, only if you feel like it. If you don't feel like it, you can just click
here and judge kittens.
For the rest of you, my latest article is below, it was cross listed to some pretty sweet blogs, such as
Racialicious and Angry Asian Man (!)
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| My friend Greg in the Pride flag and self-scrawled
T-shirt, and yes he is also awesome, as awesome as judging kittens.... |
Photo by Soyun Park/AAPI Immigration Table. Photo by Soyun Park/API Immigration Table
Photo by Soyun Park/AAPI Immigration Table
Not Your Model Minority
by: S. Nadia Hussain
On
October 8, Gregory Cendana, the Executive Director of the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) was
arrested, along with two hundred other activists and eight members of Congress
in our nation's capitol. In photos from that day, he is seen being led away in
handcuffs with a pride flag tied around his neck like superhero cape and a
handwritten t-shirt -- with the words “Not your Model Minority” scrawled on the
front. Cendana is Asian American and his actions that day stood as a testament
to the diverse communities that are impacted by the lack of immigration
reform.
Immigration
is often framed as an issue impacting mostly Latino populations. According to
the Pew Hispanic Center -- though the modern immigration wave from Latin
America has made up 50% of US immigration, migration from Asia makes up a substantial 27%.
Outside of Mexico, the leading countries of origin of immigrants are India, the
Philippines and China. Asians make up 13%
of the US undocumented population. The US Office of Homeland security estimates that as
of 2009, the largest undocumented Asian populations are 270,000 immigrants from
the Philippines, 200,000 from India, 200,000 from Korea and 120,000 from China.
The
stereotype of Asians as the model minority makes invisible the stories of the
individuals and families behind these numbers. While immigration reform stalls
within legislative chambers, activists and community members have come out in
droves to highlight its impact on their communities. The October 8th
action was part of a coordinated campaign around immigration reform launched by
eight national AAPI organizations.
It
was also the third immigration action taken within the last six months in D.C.
There was the protest less than a month ago, where roughly 200 women protested
and over 100 were arrested as part of as mass
demonstration. Before that, there was an organized protest on August 1, where over 46
labor leaders, immigrant advocates, environmental activists, people of faith,
and DREAMers blocked the street in front of Capitol Hill while 300 allies and
four members of Congress cheered them on.
Yet
in light of the Government shutdown, many are afraid that immigration efforts
will be stalled indefinitely. “Have our congressional leaders forgotten that
this is a nation of immigrants?” Cendana asks. “America is a nation of values,
founded on the idea that all men and women are created equal. How we treat new
immigrants reflects our commitment to the values that define America and how we
define American.”
These
words and actions haven’t escaped the attention of the President. The day after
reaching a deal to re-open the government, President Obama vowed to pursue a House vote on immigration
reform: “The majority of Americans think this is the right thing to
do” said the President, “and it’s sitting there waiting for the House to pass
it....But let’s not leave this problem to keep festering...This can and should
get done by the end of this year.”
The
ongoing pressure from these communities may help ensure that the President
delivers on this resolve and that Congress realizes that the immigration issue
won’t disappear -- shutdown or no shutdown. Activists
On October 8, Gregory Cendana, the Executive Director of the
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) was arrested, along with two
hundred other activists and eight members of Congress in our nation's
capitol. In photos from that day, he is
seen being led away in handcuffs with a pride flag tied around his neck
like superhero cape and a handwritten t-shirt -- with the words “Not your Model
Minority” scrawled on the front. Cendana is Asian American and his actions that
day stood as a testament to the diverse communities that are impacted by the
lack of immigration reform.
Immigration is often framed as an issue impacting
mostly Latino populations. According to the Pew Hispanic Center -- though the modern immigration wave from Latin
America has made up 50% of US immigration,
migration from Asia makes up a
substantial 27%. Outside of Mexico, the leading countries of origin of
immigrants are India, the Philippines and China. Asians make up
13% of the US undocumented population. The
US Office of Homeland security estimates
that as of 2009, the largest undocumented Asian populations are 270,000
immigrants from the Philippines, 200,000 from India, 200,000
from Korea and 120,000 from China.
The stereotype of Asians as the model minority makes invisible the
stories of the individuals and families behind these numbers.
While immigration reform stalls within legislative chambers, activists
and community members have come out in droves to highlight its impact on
their
communities. The October 8
th action was part of a coordinated campaign
around immigration reform launched by
eight national AAPI organizations.
It was also the third immigration action taken within the
last six months in D.C. There was the protest less than a month ago,
where roughly 200 women protested and over
100 were arrested as part of
as mass demonstration.
Before that, there was an
organized protest on August 1, where over 46 labor
leaders, immigrant advocates, environmental activists, people of faith, and
DREAMers blocked the street in front of Capitol Hill while 300 allies and four
members of Congress cheered them on.
Yet in light of the Government shutdown, many are
afraid that immigration efforts will be stalled indefinitely. “Have our
congressional leaders forgotten that this is a nation of immigrants?” Cendana
asks. “America is a nation of values, founded on the idea that all men and
women are created equal. How we treat new immigrants reflects our commitment to
the values that define America and how we define American.”
These words and actions haven’t escaped
the attention of the President. The day after reaching a deal to re-open the
government,
President Obama vowed to pursue a House vote on immigration reform: “The majority of Americans think this is the
right thing to do” said the President, “and it’s sitting there waiting for the
House to pass it....But
let’s not leave this problem to keep festering...This can and should get done by the end of this year.”
The ongoing pressure from these
communities may help ensure that the President delivers on this resolve and that Congress
realizes that the immigration issue won’t disappear -- shutdown or no shutdown.
Activists and officials like the ones who protested and were arrested last week
will be there to ensure that it doesn’t.
- See more at:
http://www.hyphenmagazine.com/blog/archive/2013/10/not-your-model-minority-asian-americans-and-immigration-fight#sthash.xiHI8VTH.dpuf
On October 8, Gregory Cendana, the Executive Director of the
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) was arrested, along with two
hundred other activists and eight members of Congress in our nation's
capitol. In photos from that day, he is
seen being led away in handcuffs with a pride flag tied around his neck
like superhero cape and a handwritten t-shirt -- with the words “Not your Model
Minority” scrawled on the front. Cendana is Asian American and his actions that
day stood as a testament to the diverse communities that are impacted by the
lack of immigration reform.
Immigration is often framed as an issue impacting
mostly Latino populations. According to the Pew Hispanic Center -- though the modern immigration wave from Latin
America has made up 50% of US immigration,
migration from Asia makes up a
substantial 27%. Outside of Mexico, the leading countries of origin of
immigrants are India, the Philippines and China. Asians make up
13% of the US undocumented population. The
US Office of Homeland security estimates
that as of 2009, the largest undocumented Asian populations are 270,000
immigrants from the Philippines, 200,000 from India, 200,000
from Korea and 120,000 from China.
The stereotype of Asians as the model minority makes invisible the
stories of the individuals and families behind these numbers.
While immigration reform stalls within legislative chambers, activists
and community members have come out in droves to highlight its impact on
their
communities. The October 8
th action was part of a coordinated campaign
around immigration reform launched by
eight national AAPI organizations.
It was also the third immigration action taken within the
last six months in D.C. There was the protest less than a month ago,
where roughly 200 women protested and over
100 were arrested as part of
as mass demonstration.
Before that, there was an
organized protest on August 1, where over 46 labor
leaders, immigrant advocates, environmental activists, people of faith, and
DREAMers blocked the street in front of Capitol Hill while 300 allies and four
members of Congress cheered them on.
Yet in light of the Government shutdown, many are
afraid that immigration efforts will be stalled indefinitely. “Have our
congressional leaders forgotten that this is a nation of immigrants?” Cendana
asks. “America is a nation of values, founded on the idea that all men and
women are created equal. How we treat new immigrants reflects our commitment to
the values that define America and how we define American.”
These words and actions haven’t escaped
the attention of the President. The day after reaching a deal to re-open the
government,
President Obama vowed to pursue a House vote on immigration reform: “The majority of Americans think this is the
right thing to do” said the President, “and it’s sitting there waiting for the
House to pass it....But
let’s not leave this problem to keep festering...This can and should get done by the end of this year.”
The ongoing pressure from these
communities may help ensure that the President delivers on this resolve and that Congress
realizes that the immigration issue won’t disappear -- shutdown or no shutdown.
Activists and officials like the ones who protested and were arrested last week
will be there to ensure that it doesn’t.
- See more at:
http://www.hyphenmagazine.com/blog/archive/2013/10/not-your-model-minority-asian-americans-and-immigration-fight#sthash.xiHI8VTH.dpuf
On October 8, Gregory Cendana, the Executive Director of the
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance (APALA) was arrested, along with two
hundred other activists and eight members of Congress in our nation's
capitol. In photos from that day, he is
seen being led away in handcuffs with a pride flag tied around his neck
like superhero cape and a handwritten t-shirt -- with the words “Not your Model
Minority” scrawled on the front. Cendana is Asian American and his actions that
day stood as a testament to the diverse communities that are impacted by the
lack of immigration reform.
Immigration is often framed as an issue impacting
mostly Latino populations. According to the Pew Hispanic Center -- though the modern immigration wave from Latin
America has made up 50% of US immigration,
migration from Asia makes up a
substantial 27%. Outside of Mexico, the leading countries of origin of
immigrants are India, the Philippines and China. Asians make up
13% of the US undocumented population. The
US Office of Homeland security estimates
that as of 2009, the largest undocumented Asian populations are 270,000
immigrants from the Philippines, 200,000 from India, 200,000
from Korea and 120,000 from China.
The stereotype of Asians as the model minority makes invisible the
stories of the individuals and families behind these numbers.
While immigration reform stalls within legislative chambers, activists
and community members have come out in droves to highlight its impact on
their
communities. The October 8
th action was part of a coordinated campaign
around immigration reform launched by
eight national AAPI organizations.
It was also the third immigration action taken within the
last six months in D.C. There was the protest less than a month ago,
where roughly 200 women protested and over
100 were arrested as part of
as mass demonstration.
Before that, there was an
organized protest on August 1, where over 46 labor
leaders, immigrant advocates, environmental activists, people of faith, and
DREAMers blocked the street in front of Capitol Hill while 300 allies and four
members of Congress cheered them on.
Yet in light of the Government shutdown, many are
afraid that immigration efforts will be stalled indefinitely. “Have our
congressional leaders forgotten that this is a nation of immigrants?” Cendana
asks. “America is a nation of values, founded on the idea that all men and
women are created equal. How we treat new immigrants reflects our commitment to
the values that define America and how we define American.”
These words and actions haven’t escaped
the attention of the President. The day after reaching a deal to re-open the
government,
President Obama vowed to pursue a House vote on immigration reform: “The majority of Americans think this is the
right thing to do” said the President, “and it’s sitting there waiting for the
House to pass it....But
let’s not leave this problem to keep festering...This can and should get done by the end of this year.”
The ongoing pressure from these
communities may help ensure that the President delivers on this resolve and that Congress
realizes that the immigration issue won’t disappear -- shutdown or no shutdown.
Activists and officials like the ones who protested and were arrested last week
will be there to ensure that it doesn’t.
- See more at:
http://www.hyphenmagazine.com/blog/archive/2013/10/not-your-model-minority-asian-americans-and-immigration-fight#sthash.xiHI8VTH.dpuf
