Organized by AAUC and CLUSA and co-sponsored by over 20 civic organizations, 2020 National Civic Leadership Forum was successfully conducted between 9/12-20 via a virtual platform. More than 160 speakers, representing over 80 organizations and 11 AAPI ethnic groups, presented 27 dynamic, informational, and insightful learning sessions under the theme of the Forum was: AAPI Unity: The Power of We!
The week-long virtual conference has welcomed nearly 600 registered attendees, with over 18 ethnicities, 45% being under 40-years-old and 62% identifying as female.
“This forum belongs to the people who have spoken and those who have come and listened and learned” remarked AAUC President SK Lo. The breadth and depth of the 27 learning sessions are unimaginable in a regular top-down organized event. NCLF is truly an open, bottom-up, grassroots gathering where folks have spoken out about what concerns them.
In his opening speech, Andrew Yang stated, “We all share common goals, ideas, and ambitions for our families. I think we’re just scratching the surface of the impact Asian Americans can have across the board.”
Forum participants were inspired and encouraged by the messages from the keynote speakers, Andrew Yang (formal presidential candidate), Yumi Hoga, (the First Lady of Maryland), and Jim Nielsen (State Senator of CA) in the opening ceremony
The keynote speeches delivered on the second day of the Forum enlighten the audience on key issues affecting minority groups in this country. Ty Bledsoe, an African American author and corporate executive made a presentation on “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” and Sean Do, an author and a survivor of the Khmer Rouge genocide shared his moving personal story “More Than our Total”.
Beside content delivery, 2020 NCLF also featured 25 sponsors and 50 exhibitors. On September 18th, we celebrated our cultural diversity through musical performances, a youth poetry reading, a dance session, and four lively cooking demos.
NCLF issued a joint statement at the closing ceremony. The key message was:
“We celebrate our diversities while uniting under a common goal: increasing AAPI voter turnout and census participation, holding ourselves accountable and being counted. We pledge to reach out to our relatives, friends, organizations, and community to participate in the 2020 census and election at all levels of government.
Representation Matters. AAPI Votes Matter!”
Recorded Sessions
One major advantage of a virtual conference is that all sessions are recorded for continued consumption and a lasting impact. Due to everyone’s busy schedule, you may not be able to attend certain sessions or may have missed the entire forum. No problem. Here is the link to access all the recorded sessions, including the opening ceremony and culture entertainments of 2020 NCLF. All recording were professionally edited to enhance your viewing experiences. Enjoy this multi-ethnic content feast!
Highlights
AAUC recommend three recorded sessions under NCLF’s sub-theme “We are empowered” to AAPI community to watch because they are directly related to the upcoming election.
Organized by a group of Indian American activists, this session delivered a powerful message on political engagement:” In 2020 we have the highest number of South Asian Americans running for office…Further; there is a need to educate the majority of Asian Americans who do not engage in elections.”
Five panelists presented AAPI data on civic engagement, census participation, elected officials, and community advocate. The presentations was followed by a panel discussion focusing on how to use available data to empower AAPI community for increasing voter turnout, census participation and community services.
Moderated by Derek Uehara, a Radio Talk Show Host and Community Leader, Former White House AAPI Council, NCLF was excited to have the Trump/Pence and Biden/Harris representatives to talk about the issues concerning AAPI community Such as (1) Social Justice, Race Relations, and the American Value, (2) Jobs and Economy, and (3) Education
Acknowledgement
2020 NCLF would not be possible without the support of its Steering Committee, our volunteers from AAUC, CLUSA and the three professional group of consultants from AdvancED Consulting, Ding Ding TV, and Tinycast Company.
November AAPI Unity Webinar
Stay tuned for our upcoming November 14 Webinar on AAPI Solidarity: Developing Joint Human Destiny.
Actions Before the Election Voter registration before the deadlines for 33 states arrive. Remember based on the data, you can assume that half of your friends and family are not registered and are letting others speak for them if do not vote. Please share any success stories..
Fighting Disinformation and misinformation is now a crucial part of our work for the next 4 weeks. You can learn more about this effort by watching the webinar: Get Your Facts Straight: Fighting Disinformation Online, presented by our partner Common Cause.
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