Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders

Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders Blog

  • President Obama Extends Warmest Wishes for Diwali

    Posted by Kiran Ahuja and Ashley Allison on October 22, 2014 at 3:15 PM EDT

    Today, President Obama wished a Happy Diwali to all those who celebrate the festival of lights.

    Watch on YouTube

    In 2009, President Obama became the first U.S. president to celebrate the festival of lights, a time of rejoicing for many in the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community and across the world.

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  • Young Leaders Dialogue on Education: October 30

    Posted by Jason Tengco on October 10, 2014 at 10:00 AM EDT

    Please join the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (WHIAAPI) and young leaders from across the country on Thursday, October 30, 2014 from 6:00 - 7:00 p.m. ET for our first Young Leaders Dialogue (YLD) Google+ Hangout on Education!

    During the YLD, Administration officials, community representatives, and WHIAAPI E3! Ambassadors will talk about Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs), college affordability, and resources to stop bullying. Speakers will highlight key federal resources, and most importantly, we’ll have an opportunity to hear from you on your issues and concerns!

    In addition, E3! Ambassadors throughout the country will host YLD watch parties and in-person activities focused on education. We encourage you to join them in their ongoing efforts to “educate, engage, and empower” their campuses and communities around education, mental health, pathways to public service, and Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) throughout the year. To see if there’s a watch party in your area, or to host your own, please email WhiteHouseAAPI@ed.gov.

    You can submit questions anytime on Twitter using #E3YLD, email them to WhiteHouseAAPI@ed.gov, or submit them on Google+ before or during the Hangout. Our YLDs depend on your thoughtful participation, so please register, join the conversation, and read about more ways to get engaged!

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  • Engaging AAPI Community Leaders on Health and Immigration

    Posted by Diane Narasaki on October 1, 2014 at 11:28 AM EDT

    AAPI leaders in health and immigration meet with senior White House and Administration leaders during a community roundtable on September 24, 2014

    AAPI leaders in health and immigration meet with senior White House and Administration leaders during a community roundtable on September 24, 2014. (Photo by WHIAAPI)

    On September 24, 2014, Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community leaders from around the country met with senior officials from the White House Domestic Policy Council (DPC), White House Office of Public Engagement, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to discuss health and immigration.

    The Administration officials reaffirmed their unwavering commitment to improving the quality of life and opportunities for AAPIs across the country. Cecilia Muñoz, Assistant to the President and Director of the DPC, opened the meeting by thanking community leaders for their work and partnership, particularly on health care enrollment and immigration reform.

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  • Data.gov/AAPI: More Than Just Numbers

    Posted by Kiran Ahuja and Jordan Matsudaira on September 30, 2014 at 12:00 PM EDT

    Did you know 3 in 4 Asian Americans speak a language other than English at home? Or that Pacific Islanders have among the highest unemployment rates of all racial or ethnic groups? And did you know that Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) have the lowest utilization rates of mental health services among all minority groups?

    Facts such as these about the AAPI community are unknown to many. And with AAPIs as the fastest-growing racial group in the country – expected to more than double to over 47 million by 2060 – comes the critical need to better understand this understudied community. Lack of data has given rise to the model minority myth, the notion that virtually all AAPIs are self-sufficient, well-educated, and upwardly mobile.  

    Within the expanding AAPI community, there are unmet needs ranging from health care to language access in which the federal government can help bridge the gaps. But how are federal agencies and policymakers able to do so when statistics and information are unavailable or difficult to locate?

    To address this issue, the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (WHIAAPI), in partnership with Data.gov, have created Data.gov/AAPI, a single place to find government data on AAPIs. We are launching it, to start, with approximately 2,000 datasets and reports from nearly 50 federal, state, county, and city sources pertaining to the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander community. These data, which have been categorized and tagged according to a wide variety of themes, can help federal agencies and policymakers understand and address disparities in socioeconomic status, educational attainment, health, and other areas of importance.

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  • September 30: Stakeholder Call on the Launch of Data.gov/AAPI

    Posted by Kiran Ahuja on September 24, 2014 at 6:05 PM EDT

    The White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and Data.gov are launching a new resource that aims to consolidate data on the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander community: Data.gov/AAPI. Please join us for a conference call on Tuesday, September 30, 2014 at 4:00 p.m. ET.

    • Call: Launch of Data.gov/AAPI
    • Date: Tuesday, September 30, 2014
    • Time: 4:00 p.m. ET
    • Speakers:
      • Kiran Ahuja, Executive Director, White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
      • Jordan Matsudaira, Chief Economist, Council of Economic Advisers, White House
      • Karthick Ramakrishnan, Professor, University of California, Riverside

    In order to participate in this call, please register at:

    You will receive dial-in information upon confirmation of your registration.

    Please note that the call will be off the record and for non-press purposes.

    Kiran Ahuja is Executive Director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

  • September 30 Webinar on Hepatitis B Provider Knowledge and Screening Practices

    Posted by Christine Soyong Harley on September 22, 2014 at 6:43 PM EDT

    Please join Hep B United and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders on Tuesday, September 30, 2014 from 3:00-4:00 PM ET for a webinar on Hepatitis B Provider Knowledge and Screening Practices featuring speakers from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Hep B United partners.

    Hepatitis B affects up to 2 million Americans, yet the disease is often overlooked and largely underdiagnosed. Additionally, studies have shown that knowledge about chronic viral hepatitis among health care providers is generally poor. Join us for this interactive session to learn more about health care provider knowledge and screening for hepatitis B. Speakers will discuss barriers, model programs, and opportunities toward improving provider knowledge and reducing hepatitis B health disparities in the Asian American and Pacific Islander and other at-risk communities.

    Date:
    Tuesday, September 30, 2014

    Time:
    3:00 PM - 4:00 PM ET

    Register at: http://bit.ly/Wc53iW

    A confirmation email with information on how to join the webinar will be sent to you after you register.

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