FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: emma@ncapaonline.org
January 14, 2021
Washington, DC— The National Council of Asian Pacific Americans (NCAPA) recently submitted the coalition’s policy priorities to Congressional Leadership for the incoming 117th Congress. The document outlines critical policy priorities, which reflect the efforts of our member organizations and policy committees. If implemented, these priorities could greatly impact the futures of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities. A copy of the letter submitted to Congress can be found here.
The past year has been difficult as our country continues to battle the effects of COVID-19 and confront racial injustices. For Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities, the pandemic has revealed deep-rooted inequities that would have otherwise gone unrecognized. Pacific Islander and South Asian communities are experiencing high COVID-19 infection rates, AAPIs in poverty are more likely than then general poverty population to live in COVID-19 hotspots, and Asian Americans have found themselves facing an increase in ongoing violence due to Islamophobia and xenophobia or being blamed for the virus’s spread.
Many of our members have been working hard to ensure our communities continue to be served during the pandemic. The policy priorities for the 117th Congress have been developed by our policy committee co-chairs to address issues ranging from civil rights, immigration, healthcare, education, housing and economic justice. We urge the 117th Congress to consider and incorporate these priorities into their legislative agenda to ensure that Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities can have the opportunity to not only recover, but begin to thrive.
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Based in Washington, D.C., the National Council of Asian Pacific Americans is a coalition of 37 national Asian Pacific American organizations that serves to represent the interests of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities and to provide a national voice for our communities’ concerns. Our communities are the fastest growing racial/ethnic group in the United States, currently making up approximately six percent of the population.