SEPTEMBER 22, 2022

Hello, everyone!

On Tuesday, U.S. lawmakers introduced the Southeast Asian Deportation Relief Act, which would place limitations on the Department of Homeland Security on deporting refugees from Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos.

It is estimated that the bill would help 15,000 Southeast Asian refugees. Out of those 15,000, around 80% of those individuals were convicted of a crime and completed their sentences, but they still face final orders of removal and deportation.

Organizations like the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center advocated for and assisted U.S. lawmakers in pushing this bill forward. Director of the Southeast Asia Resource Action Center, Quyen Dinh, argues that this bill will help right a wrong that the U.S. created, ​​as the nation and the government has a “unique responsibility to stay accountable to the trauma that had been created.”

This piece of legislation would prevent the DHS from detaining or deporting Southeast Asian refugees who arrived in the U.S. before 2008, and end the practice of in-person check-ins with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

Spotlight 💡

Nasrat Khalid, an Afghan entrepreneur living in the U.S., initially created the Etsy-like service Aseel to sell Afghan-made goods. When the Taliban took control of the country in August of 2021, Khalid’s service became a new channel for humanitarian aid and support.

When Kabul fell and people were internally displaced from their homes, Khalid pulled out Aseel’s cash reserves to provide tent shelters, clothes and food packages. Then, he added a category in the Aseel’s app for “Emergency Support,” which focused on mitigating food shortages by buying and distributing food packages containing Afghan green tea, flour, biscuits, sugar, beans, rice and lentils. The packages cost $85 each, and as of August 2022, the system has delivered food to almost 43,275 families and 302,925 individuals.

Now, the app is recognized as one of the most reliable ways to support Afghan residents.

Race in America 🌎

On Monday, the Asian American and Pacific Islander PA Power Caucus released a policy platform dedicated to maintaining vote-by-mail systems and advocating for state and local agencies severing work relations with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency.

In 2020, AAPI voters had the highest vote-by-mail sign-up rate in Pennsylvania, so for AAPI residents, keeping this procedure in place helps the community significantly. The platform also elaborated on other issues including funding education and ethnic studies and addressing climate change and its effects on the local community.

In addition to refugee and immigration issues, the caucus also cited a need for mental health responders after seeing a failure on police reform and persisting language barriers that hinder the safety of the AAPI community. The group also called on officials to protect communities from “individual aggressors and predatory developers.”

Mel Lee, the executive director of the Woori Center, explained that Asians account for two million of the total 11 million undocumented immigrants within the U.S., which means that their access to healthcare, housing and employment is limited. For Lee, “immigrant issues are Asian American issues,” and “immigrant issues are human rights issues.”

In Other Asian News 🗞

In the Philippines, hundreds of Filipino activists took to the streets on the 50th anniversary of the declaration of martial law in the nation.

Imposed by late Filipino leader Ferdinand Marcos Sr. in 1972, the human rights abuses and injustices that occurred during his 14-year rule remain one of the darkest points in Filipino history. Activists chanted “never forget” as they held banners condemning the various crimes committed by Marcos Sr. and his government.
 

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The Nepalese government has been in turmoil after President Bidhya Devi Bhandari refused to sign the new citizenship bill and clashed with other officials.

The bill focused primarily on giving citizenship certificates to children whose parents’ whereabouts are unknown so that children born under Nepali mothers would be granted protection after they were declared by their maternal parent. The amendment would have granted 500,000 people citizenship certificates and voting rights, but on Wednesday, the 16-year-old bill was not approved in time by Bhandari, who refused to sign it, citing that her concerns about the changes were not addressed.

In June, Kiyoha Kiritaka, a former maiko, a geisha in training, publicly exposed and decried the sexual assault and harassment she experienced at her workplace, but her story is only one of the many examples of abuse within the geisha community.

While prostitution has been outlawed in Japan since 1956, Kiritaka watched as her “mother,” or employer, tried to suggest a price for her virginity. Despite the public pressure, the geisha district she worked in, Pondo-cho, has not responded to her comments, leading many to speculate how long this practice has persisted.

Fumika Tamura, another former geisha who went public about her experiences 30 years ago, whole-heardtedly believes Kiritaka. Tamura explains that the abuse also includes overworking, isolation and verbal abuse, claiming that the secrecy of the geisha world allowed it to conceal the insidious inner-workings of the industry, which continues to trap young women in its system.

Film and TV 📺

Kumail Nanjiani will star as Chippendales founder Somen “Steve” Banerjee in the upcoming Hulu series “Welcome to Chippendales,” set to premiere on November 22.

It will depict Banerjee’s story in the adult entertainment industry and his involvement with a true crime plot to kill several Chippendales dancers.

What else is on our minds? 🧠
 

• The Japanese American National Museum is inviting the public to see and sign a sacred book of records, the Ireichō. It has the names of over 125,000 people of Japanese ancestry who were imprisoned in camps during WWII.  

• Indonesia has passed a digital privacy law to hopefully better protect its citizens from data breaches. 

• A look at the history of Sentosa, a popular Singaporean island and travel destination. 

• Hong Kong police have arrested a harmonica player for a protest tune during a funeral vigil for Queen Elizabeth II. 

• Ancient whale temples in Vietnam are helping scientists learn about the marine mammals.   

• South Korea is now asking Interpol to help stop Terra founder Do Kwon from fleeing extradition.