Roland Hwang's Michigan State Bar Journal Article

Read Roland Hwang's article in the Michigan State Bar Journal (in PDF Format) about how the Vincent Chin case spawned the Asian American Civil Rights Movement and many of the legal changes that occured because of it. Much of this content is the same as was in his remarks at the 34th Legal Milestone Dedication Ceremony.

Full Article: www.michbar.org/journal/pdf/pdf4article1505.pdf - 2009-04-30

Frances Wang: Role of the Media in the Vincent Chin Case and the Birth of the Asian American Civil Rights Movement

Frances Wang's remarks about the Role of the Media in the Vincent Chin Case and the in the Birth of the Asian American Civil Rights Movement at the The State Bar of Michigan's 34th Michigan Legal Milestone commemorates the Vincent Chin Case "From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry," Friday, June 19, 2009 can be found at:

http://www.multiculturaltoolbox.com/American_Citizens_for_Justice/MediaChin.html

Local 4: 27-Year Anniversary of Vincent Chin's Death

Local 4's Roger Weber reports on the anniversary of a Detroit man who was beaten to death by angry auto workers 27 years ago. Includes remarks by LG Almeda and Professor Sedler at the 34th annual Legal Milestone Dedication Ceremony and an interview with Judge Kaufman's son.

Check out this video from Local 4 TV Station WDIV, Detroit:
http://www.clickondetroit.com/video/19804602/index.html

Detroit Free Press: Legal Legacy of Vincent Chin Case Remembered

Check out this article in the Detroit Free Press:
BY EMILIA ASKARI • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • June 19, 2009

Today, 27 years after Vincent Chin was beaten to death in Highland Park by a laid-off autoworker and his stepfather, the State Bar of Michigan plans to recognize the legal issues that arose from the incident during a plaque-dedication ceremony at the Chinese Community Center in Madison Heights.

Full Story: http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009906190433

Detroit Free Press: This Week in Michigan History: Man beaten to death by angry autoworkers

Check out this article in the Detroit Free Press:

This Week in Michigan History: Man beaten to death by angry autoworkers

By Zlati Meyer • June 14, 2009 • Detroit Free Press

Vincent Chin, a Chinese American, was beaten June 19, 1982, by autoworkers in Highland Park who were angry about the growing success of the Japanese auto industry.

Full Article: http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009906140469

Detroit News: Anniversary near for 1982 Vincent Chin beating death

Check out this Detroit News Article:

Anniversary near for 1982 Vincent Chin beating death--1982 killing launched civil rights movement for Asian-Americans
Jennifer Chambers / The Detroit News / Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Madison Heights -- The 1982 killing of Chinese-American Vincent Chin is a story familiar to Metro Detroiters. Chin was beaten to death with a Louisville Slugger by two autoworkers outside a Highland Park bar while he was celebrating his nuptials with friends. The killing, in the midst of a recession linked in part to the rising Japanese auto industry, outraged Asian-Americans.

Full article: http://www.detnews.com/article/20090610/METRO/906100323/1006/rss01

State Bar of Michigan 34th Legal Milestone to Highlight the Case That Gave Rise to Asian American Civil Rights Movement

The State Bar's 34th Michigan Legal Milestone dedication entitled "From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry" is set for Friday, June 19 at 11 a.m. at the Chinese Community Center in Madison Heights. The center is located at 32585 Concord Drive, south of 14 Mile Road.

The ceremony will commemorate the Vincent Chin case and reflect on its significance in our legal history. Chin's beating death in 1982 in Highland Park and the lenient sentences meted out to his assailants caused an outcry in the Asian American community and led to the birth of a civil and victims' rights movement.

A bronze plaque memorializing what occurred will be unveiled at the end of the ceremony. The plaque will be installed in Ferndale. State Bar President Ed Pappas and SBM Executive Director Janet Welch will share the duties of master of ceremonies. Speakers are:

• L. G. Almeda, past president of the Michigan Asian Pacific American Bar Association and current president of American Citizens for Justice;
• Roland Hwang, Michigan assistant attorney general, immediate past president of American Citizens for Justice, and past president of the Michigan Asian Pacific American Bar Association;
• Robert Sedler, Wayne State University Law School distinguished professor of law;
• Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, executive director of American Citizens for Justice and editor of Asian American Village at IMDiversity.com; and
• Frank H. Wu, University of Maryland professor of law, who will appear via video link from Beijing.

The Michigan Legal Milestone program is overseen by the State Bar of Michigan Public Outreach Committee chaired by Jeffrey Paulsen.

http://www.michbar.org/news/releases/archives09/legal_milestone.cfm

Michigan State Bar Journal Article: Milestone Highlights Case that Gave Rise to Asian American Civil Rights Movement

Check out this article from the Michigan State Bar Journal (in PDF format) about the upcoming 34th Legal Milestone Dedication Ceremony:

Milestone Highlights Case that Gave Rise to Asian American Civil Rights Movement

www.michbar.org/journal/pdf/pdf4article1517.pdf - 2009-05-06

CNN segment on Vincent Chin case today

Check out this Richard Lui piece on the Vincent Chin case today on CNN, with our Roland Hwang, former mayor Dennis Archer, APACC's Denise Yee, and APAP's Vincent Who?

Introducing ACJ to CNN's Richard Lui

Roland Hwang and Frances Wang were interviewed today by Richard Lui of CNN at the Detroit Historical Museum about the Vincent Chin case. We visited the exact spot where Vincent Chin was beaten to death with a baseball bat in 1982. I wish this wasn't necessary.

Meanwhile, check out the new case about Luis Ramirez in Pennsylvania--the drunken white teenagers who beat this 25-year-old Latino immigrant father of three to death were acquitted of all serious charges, including ethnic intimidation and third-degree murder. The parallels to the Vincent Chin case are chilling.

No Justice for Vincent Then, No Justice for Luis Now--New America Media
http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=9e2048d40c455fde88d57b3f8e8819ca

"Community Gathering: MI Asian & Arab American Vote 2008" on Monday, May 18 at 5:30pm.

Event: Community Gathering: MI Asian & Arab American Vote 2008
"APIAVote-MI, ACCESS, AALDEF, release of exit poll 2008, Glenn Magpantay"
What: Informational Meeting
Host: APIAVote-Michigan
Start Time: Monday, May 18 at 5:30pm
End Time: Monday, May 18 at 7:30pm
Where: Canton Township Office - Freedom Room

During the 2008 Presidential Elections, over 1,600 Asian & Arab American voters in Michigan participated in AALDEF’s multilingual exit poll. The exit poll was the largest nonpartisan survey of its kind in the nation and was conducted in twelve Asian languages and English across 11 states.

The exit poll reveals vital information about Asian & Arab American voting patterns that is often overlooked in mainstream voter surveys. At this special presentation, comparative information will be given about the Asian & Arab American vote in the Presidential and congressional elections, concerns about key issues, first‐time voters, and profiles by ethnicity, party enrollment, age, and
English proficiency.

Lead hosts: Asian American Legal Defense & Education Fund, Asian & Pacific Islander American Vote - Michigan, and Arab Community Center for Economic and Social Services

Cosponsors: American Citizens for Justice, American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, Asian Pacific Americans for Progress - Michigan, Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance - Michigan, Association of Chinese Americans, Bangladeshi American Public Affairs Committee, Filipino American Community Council of Michigan, Michigan Election Coalition, Michigan Asian Pacific American Bar Association, Midwest Buddhist & Meditation Center, and Thai Association.

Our Weekend with Helen Zia

Our evening (actually it was an entire weekend) with Helen Zia was a great success. So cool to be running around with Jim Shimoura, Roland Hwang, Ron Aramaki, and Helen Zia--to MSU, Ann Arbor, MSU again, Madison Heights--hearing all the behind-the-scenes stories of how they did what they did back then. It felt like being with cowboys taming the old west. The Asian Pacific American movement really did start here!

I also had the honor of meeting many of the community members who worked on the Vincent Chin case 27 years ago, including the Chinese-Filipino American nurse who was on duty when they brought Vincent Chin into the emergency room, and the elderly couple who folded and hand delivered all the press releases (remember, no faxes or email back then).

Now I better understand the power of what happened. People really pulled together, put their personal lives on hold, created a community where previously there had been none, and did what needed to be done...for Vincent Chin and for all of us.

From us slightly younger APAs, thank you all.

Helen Zia speaking this weekend

One of ACJ's founding board members and past president, Helen Zia, will be speaking three times in Michigan this weekend. Not to be missed!

Thursday, April 16, 7-8pm
Helen Zia will be speaking about Journalism to Joe Grimm's journalism class:
Room 147, Communication Arts and Sciences, MSU, E. Lansing, MI
http://www.mapquest.com/maps?city=East+Lansing&state=MI&address=[1-599]+Communication+Arts+And+Sci&zipcode=48824&country=US&latitude=42.72315&longitude=-84.481&geocode=STREET

Saturday, April 18, 12-1:30pm
Helen Zia will be the keynote speaker at MSU's APA Conference
MSU's third annual APA Studies Conference, "Global-is-Asian: Asian diaspora identities in the context of globalization" is an academic emploration of the diversity, commplexity and possibilities of Asian Pacific America in the 21st century.
https://www.msu.edu/~apaspec/conf09/

Saturday, April 18, 6:30-8:30pm
Helen Zia will be the keynote speaker at ACJ's fundraising event at
Association of Chinese Americans Chinese Community Center, 32585 Concord Drive, Madison Heights, MI 48071(located one block east of the I-75/14 Mile Road interchange - 1/2 block south of 14 Mile)
The event is co-sponsored by the Association of Chinese Americans, Ann Arbor Chinese Center of Michigan, FILAMCCO, Japanese American Citizens League-Detroit, the Governor's Advisory Council on Asian Pacific American Affairs, APIA Vote-Michigan, Council of Asian Pacific Americans, American Arab Anti Discrimination Committee, Michigan chapter, and MSU's APA Program.

Executive Director Wang on WDET Radio

American Citizens for Justice Executive Director Frances Kai-Hwa Wang was interviewed today live on WDET Radio's Detroit Today about US-Canada Border Security, as well as the resurgence of anti-Asian hate crimes in the current recession.

We are in favor of secure borders, of course, but the question is how that is carried out. We are very concerned about racial profiling of Americans at the US-Canadian border. We are working hard to make sure that all Americans are treated fairly and equally and are not profiled based on stereotypes about their ethnicity or race or national origin or name.

We are also very concerned about anti-Asian hate crimes during the current recession. We are educating Asian Pacific Americans how to identify and respond to hate crimes, networking and building multiracial coalitions with other civil rights groups, and educating the mainstream that Asian Pacific Americans are Americans, too.

http://www.wdetfm.org/detroittoday/entry.php?entry=661

ACJ at MSU APA Conference

A new ACJ Panel has just been added to the MSU APA Conference this Saturday, April 18, 2-3pm:

Title: The Vincent Chin Case: Look Back and Moving Forward

Presenters:
Roland Hwang, ACJ VP of Board of Directors
Jim Shimoura, ACJ Board of Directors
Frances Wang, Executive Director of ACJ
Ron Aramaki, Former ACJ Board of Directors

Organization: American Citizens for Justice.

Psst: Not confirmed yet, but Helen Zia, the keynote speaker, MAY also be joining us on the panel.

MSU's third annual APA Studies Conference, "Global-is-Asian: Asian diaspora identities in the context of globalization" is an academic exploration of the diversity, complexity, and possibilities of Asian Pacific America in the 21st century. https://www.msu.edu/~apaspec/conf09/

Helen Zia Talk and ACJ Fundraiser 4/18/09

American Citizens for Justice/ Asian American Center for Justice Fundraiser and Evening with Helen Zia Saturday, April 18, 6:30 pm

American Citizens for Justice, Inc., a 501(c)(3) Asian Pacific American civil rights organization is pleased to announce its fundraising reception, An Evening with Helen Zia.

Helen Zia is a past president of ACJ, a renowned author of "Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People", and co-author of "My Country Versus Me", with Wen Ho Lee.

The event is co-sponsored by the Association of Chinese Americans, Ann Arbor Chinese Center of Michigan, FILAMCCO, Japanese American Citizens League-Detroit, the Governor's Advisory Council on Asian Pacific American Affairs, APIA Vote-Michigan, Council of Asian Pacific Americans, and American Arab Anti Discrimination Committee Michigan chapter, MSU Program in Asian Pacific American Studies.

When: Saturday, April 18, 2009 at 6:30 pm

Where: Association of Chinese Americans - Chinese Community Center

32585 Concord Drive, Madison Heights, MI 48071

(located one block east of the I-75/14 Mile Road interchange - 1/2 block south of 14 Mile)

Contact for more information, and to RSVP:

Roland Hwang 248-347-1663

L G Almeda 734-302-6019

Frances Kai-Hwa Wang fkwang.acj@gmail.com

Tickets are $25 per person, $100 corporate/organizational (including 5 tickets); Gold Sponsors $500; Students $15. Checks and donations go to:

American Citizens for Justice, Inc., PO Box 851163, Westland, MI 48185.

Hors d'oeuvres and refreshments will be served.

American Citizens for Justice/ Asian American Center for Justice, the 501c3 nonprofit Asian Pacific American civil rights advocacy group founded after the baseball beating death of Vincent Chin in Detroit.

Vincent Who Documentary Screenings

American Citizens for Justice/ Asian American Center for Justice, the 501c3 nonprofit Asian American civil rights advocacy group founded after the baseball beating death of Vincent Chin in Detroit is coordinating several local showings of the new documentary film, Vincent Who? with guest appearances by the filmmakers, Curtis Chin and Michael Lee. There will be four showings of this film this weekend in Madison Heights, Ann Arbor, and Dearborn.

In 1982, Chinese American Vincent Chin was murdered in Highland Park, Michigan, by two out-of-work autoworkers at the height of anti-Japanese sentiments. His killers were sentenced to a $3000 fine and 3 years of probation. They never served one day in jail. For the first time, Asian Americans around the country galvanized to form a real pan-Asian community and movement. The documentary film, Vincent Who? was inspired by a series of town hall meetings organized by Asian Pacific Americans for Progress (APAP) on the 25th anniversary of the case, features interviews with the key players at the time, as well as a whole new generation of activists. Vincent Who? asks how far Asian Americans have come since then and how far we have yet to go. Featured interviews include: Helen Zia (lead activist during the Chin trial), Renee Tajima Pena (director, Who Killed Vincent Chin?), Stewart Kwoh (Executive Director, Asian Pacific American Legal Center), Lisa Ling (journalist), Sumi Pendakur (Univ. of Southern California), Dale Minami (civil rights attorney), Roland Hwang and Jim Shimoura (American Citizens for Justice/ Asian American Center for Justice), Doua Thor (Executive Director, Southeast Asian Resource Action Center), and a group of five diverse young Asian Pacific American (APA) activists whose lives were impacted by Vincent Chin.

Friday April 3, 1 pm
Conversation on Race Series
University of Michigan Dearborn
Kochoff Hall Ballroom Room B
4901 Evergreen
Dearborn, MI 48126
Panel Discussion: Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, American Citizens for Justice Executive Director; Curtis Chin and Michael P. Lee, Vincent Who producers and Asian Pacific Americans for Progress.
http://sao.umd.umich.edu/sao_cor/

Friday April 3, 6:30-8:00 pm
Midwest Asian American Students Union (MAASU) Conference
University of Michigan
Biomed Science Research Building
109 Zina Pitcher Place
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Panel Discussion: Ann Malayang Daley, past president American Citizens for Justice; Curtis Chin and Michael P. Lee, Vincent Who producers and Asian Pacific Americans for Progress.
http://www.umich.edu/~maasusc/2009/index.html

Saturday April 4, 1:00-3:00 pm
Ann Arbor District Library
Multipurpose Room
343 S. Fifth St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
Panel Discussion: Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, American Citizens for Justice Executive Director; Curtis Chin and Michael P. Lee, Vincent Who producers and Asian Pacific Americans for Progress.
http://www.aadl.org/events/list/downtown

Saturday April 4 at 7 pm
Association of Chinese Americans - Chinese Community Center
32585 Concord Drive (1 block east of the I-75/14 Mile Rd. interchange, then 1/2-block south of 14 Mile Rd.)
Madison Heights, MI 48071
Panel Discussion: Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, American Citizens for Justice Executive Director; LG Almeda, Roland Hwang and Jim Shimora, American Citizens for Justice; Curtis Chin and Michael P. Lee, Vincent Who producers and Asian Pacific Americans for Progress.
Sponsored by American Citizens for Justice, Association of Chinese Americans, New Detroit, Inc., and Asian Pacific Americans for Progress
Suggested donation: $10, proceeds to American Citizens for Justice
http://web.memberclicks.com/mc/community/eventdetails.do?eventId=216007&orgId=acad

For more information, contact Frances Kai-Hwa Wang, American Citizens for Justice/ Asian American Center for Justice Executive Director at fkwang.acj@gmail.com or the contact for each particular showing.

Pacific Citizen article

"With 'Buy American' Back, is Anti-Asian Sentiment Around the Corner?" by Lynda Lin, JACL Pacific Citizen, Mar 6, 2009--quotes Roland Hwang, Frank Wu, Tony Lam

check out

pacificcitizen.org

Source: pacificcitizen.org

LG Almeda new ACJ President

First Board Meeting of 2009 tonight.

LG Almeda has been named Board President of American Citizens for Justice. Founding member and Former Board President Roland Hwang is now Vice President. Mary Kamidoi continues as Treasurer.