These pages were recently updated:

Key Contests: 5/31/09
Asian-American Candidates: 5/31/09
2008 Election Results: 1/3/09

Agenda for America: 5/3/09

Obama on Asian American Issues: 5/26/09
APA Vote in Presidential Elections: 5/23/09

Hot Topics: 1/12/08


Affirmative Action Backfires: 6/15/09
Asian-Americans in California: 1/19/08
"Asian American Politics" in the News: 11/17/08
Bush on Asian American Issues: 7/20/08
Colleges: 4/13/08
Colleges: 2007: 2/4/07
Colleges: 2008: 4/6/08
Colleges: 2009: 5/3/09
Free The North Koreans: 6/23/09
Hall of Shame: Asian American Associations Which Support Reverse Discrimination Against Asian Americans: 6/3/07
Hall of Shame: College Admission Officers: 4/11/08
Hall of Shame: Dime a Dozen: 3/9/09
Hall of Shame: Regents of the University of California: 6/24/09
Hall of Shame: TV Medical Shows (Bigots for the Left: 
Asian American men do not exist): 3/25/08
Hate Crimes: 6/11/09
Law Schools: 7/13/08
Law Schools 2007: 10/2/07
Laws Against Asian Americans: 6/13/09
Links: 12/10/08
Medical School: 5/27/09
News: 6/24/09
Statistics: 3/30/09
Statistics: Asian Americans in California: 5/16/09
Statistics on Reverse Discrimination: 5/25/09
Universities Against Asian Americans: 3/9/09
Virgina Tech: Asian American perspectives on the tragedy: 9/12/07
Veterans: 2/24/09
Voting Records: 5/3/09
Wen Ho Lee News: 12/8/08

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    Since July 2005, 30 Asian Americans and 63 Asians have appeared on the front page of the conservative Wall Street Journal.
    Bigots for the Left at The New York Times: Asians don't exist.  We crucified Wen Ho Lee and we favor reverse discrimination against Asian American applicants to colleges and professional schools.  
Meanwhile, islamic fascists murdered 3000+ unarmed civilians on September 11, 2001.


    Bigots for the Left who cast Asian American men as doctors in TV medical shows: only one in 50+ years: “House, M.D.”: Kai Penn as Dr. Lawrence Kutner; Kenneth Choi as obstetrician in first season, episode
“Maternity” which aired December 7, 2004, and anonymous Asian American men who appeared on the hospital’s board of directors and disciplinary 
board.  
    See  Hall of Shame: TV Medical Shows    

    Evil corporations which feature Asian Americans in commercials: 
    Asian American men: AT&T, Barclays Global Investors, Capital One, Careerbuilder.com, Circuit City, Cisco, Comcast, Dodge, Domino's, Edward Jones (stock brokerage), eHarmony, FedEx, Gillette, GlaxoSmithKline, Hillshire Farm, HughesNet, Intel, Kashi (health foods), NFL Network, Nortel, Procter & Gamble (Bounce sheets), Range Rover, Schick, Solvay Pharmaceuticals (Trilipix), State Farm, UBS, UPS, Verizon Wireless, Wendy’s
    Asian American women: American Express, Audi, Bank of America, Bausch & Lomb, Best Buy, Brittoni, Cisco, Cort, CVS pharmacy, Dunkin’ Donuts, Enterprise Rent-a-Car, Franklin Templeton, Geico, 
General Motors (Cadillac), Hyundai, IBM, Intel, Kellogg, Lowe's, Marriott, Michelin, Microsoft, New York Times, Pfizer, Quiznos, SAP (software), State Farm, Target, TD Waterhouse,  U.S. Trust, Visa, Volvo, Wells Fargo
    Both: American Express, Boeing, Citigroup, Disney, Geico, Hilton, Lowe's, Olay, Priceline, Samsung, Shell

6/23/09 Investors Business Daily: “The Viciousness Of Academic Liberals,”
by Walter E. Williams 
    Ward Connerly, former University of California regent, has an article, "Study, Study, Study — A Bad Career Move" in the June 2, 2009, edition of Minding the Campus that should raise any decent American's level of disgust for what's routinely practiced at most of our universities.
    Mr. Connerly tells of a conversation he had with a high-ranking UC administrator about a proposal that the administrator was developing to increase campus diversity.
    Connerly asked the administrator why he considered it important to tinker with admissions instead of just letting the chips fall where they may. His response was that unless the university took steps to "guide" admissions decisions, the UC campuses would be dominated by Asians.
    When Connerly asked, "What would be wrong with that?", the UC administrator told him that Asians are "too dull — they study, study, study." Then he said to Connerly, "If you ever say I said this, I will have to deny it."
    Connerly did not reveal the administrator's name. It would not have done any good because it's part of a diversity vision shared by most college administrators.
    With the enactment of California 's Proposition 209 in 1996, outlawing racial discrimination in college admissions, Asian enrollment at UC campuses has skyrocketed. The UC Berkeley student body is 42% Asian students; UC Irvine 55%; UC Riverside 43%; and UCLA 38%. Asian student enrollment on all nine UC campuses is over 40%. That's in a state where the Asian population is about 13%.
    When there are policies that emphasize and reward academic achievement, Asians excel. College officials and others who are proponents of "diversity" and equal representation find that outcome offensive.
    To deal with the Asian "menace," the UC regents have proposed, starting in 2010, that no longer will the top 12.5% of students based on statewide performance be automatically admitted. Students won't have to take SAT subject matter tests. Grades and test scores will no longer weigh so heavily in admission decisions.
    This is simply gross racial discrimination against those "dull" Asian students who "study, study, study" in favor of "interesting" black, white and Hispanic students who don't "study, study, study."
    This is truly evil and would be readily condemned as such if applied to other areas lacking in diversity.
    With blacks making up about 80% of professional basketball players, there is little or no diversity in professional basketball. Even at college-level basketball, it's not unusual to watch two teams playing and there not being a single white player on the court, much less a Chinese or Japanese player.
    I can think of several rule changes that might increase racial diversity in professional and college basketball. How about eliminating slam dunks and disallowing three-point shots? Restrict dribbling? Lower the basket's height?
    These and other rule changes would take away the "unfair" advantage that black players appear to have and create greater basketball diversity.
    But wouldn't diversity so achieved be despicable? If you answer yes, why would it be any less so when it's used to fulfill somebody's vision of college diversity?
    Ward Connerly ends his article saying, "There is one truth that is universally applicable in the era of 'diversity,' especially in American universities: an absolute unwillingness to accept the verdict of colorblind policies."
    Hypocrisy is part and parcel of the liberal academic elite. But the American people, who fund universities as parents, donors or taxpayers, should not accept this evilness and there's a good way to stop it — cut off the funding to racially discriminating colleges and universities.
    Williams is a professor of economics at George Mason University .

June 22, 2009 East Valley Tribune: "Block on affirmative action headed to ballot,"
By Howard Fischer
    Arizonans will decide next year if they want to outlaw affirmative action programs and any special programs or preferences for women and minorities.
   On a 17-11 vote the Senate gave final approval to a proposed constitutional amendment to prohibit preferential treatment or discrimination by government on the basis of race or sex. The measure, which already has been approved by the House, now goes on the 2010 ballot.
    It will be the first time Arizonans get to vote on the issue. A similar initiative drive in 2008 failed when backers did not get enough signatures.
    But Californian Ward Connerly, who helped craft this measure, said that does not mean Arizonans don't want the language in the state constitution.
    He said it reflected instead on the difficulties in getting measures on the ballot. And Connerly said the fact that other issues managed to qualify -- and some actually were approved -- is irrelevant.
    The measure is aimed at any law, rule or regulation that would give any group preference in public employment, contracting or education. These range from admissions to the state's two publicly funded law schools to the set-aside and bid preferences offered by Tucson for minority-owned businesses.
    "It is unconscionable that we are allowing government to discriminate in these areas,'' said Rep. Steve Montenegro, R-Litchfield Park . "That's not equal treatment.''
    Connerly, who pushed through a similar measure in his home state in 1996, said it "sets the tone that government should not be discriminating against its citizens or granting anyone preferential treatment.''
    He also said that this measure simply mirrors the intent of other civil rights laws that already ban discrimination.
    "We sometimes forget that these laws are not just there for women and minorities,'' he said.
    "They're there to apply to everybody,'' Connerly continued. "Black people aren't the only ones to have civil rights.''
    Federal courts have outlawed numerical quotas which spell out that a certain percentage of school admissions, jobs or contracts must go to minorities or women.
    But judges have upheld various "affirmative action'' programs designed to help those whose groups have been underrepresented. And the courts also have allowed certain bid preferences if the government can show that minority or women are not getting a share of contracts.
    Montenegro said such programs are not justified.  "We cannot try to get rid of discrimination by foster and allowing government to discriminate,'' he said. "It doesn't add up.''
    Connerly, who is African-American, agreed.
    "If you could convince me that there was compelling evidence that brown-skinned people, black people, Latinos, Native Americans, are genetically inferior and therefore we are disabled ... I would probably say, 'Yes, we need to allow preferences to make sure that those individuals could have a proper role in American life,'' he said.
    While Connerly says the measure is crafted to ensure that government treats everyone equally, it contains no prohibition against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
    Connerly said he wanted to keep this measure simple by mirroring the language of the 1964 federal Civil Rights Act and did not want to invite litigation by adding other issues.
   The measure also makes no mention of religious discrimination. Lobbyist Nick Simonetta said the design is to limit it to things that people cannot change like their race or sex.


6/14/09 Home Town Annapolis: "Guest Column: The cost of a diverse Naval Academy,"
by Bruce Fleming
    The Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead announced in Annapolis recently that "diversity is the number one priority" at the Naval Academy .  The Naval Academy superintendent, Vice Adm. Jeffrey Fowler, echoed him. 
    Everyone understands that "diversity" here means nonwhite skins.
    Fowler insisted recently that we needed to have Annapolis graduates who "looked like" the Fleet, where enlisted people are about 42 percent nonwhite, largely African American and Hispanic.
    The stunning revelation last week was that the Naval Academy had an incoming class that was "more diverse" than ever before: 35 percent minority.
    Sounds good, only this comes with a huge price tag. It's taxpayers who bankroll the military. Yet nobody has asked us if we're willing to pay this price. Instead we're being told there is no price to pay at all. 
    If you believe that, you probably also believe in the Tooth Fairy.
    A "diverse" class does not mean the Naval Academy recruits violinists, or older students (they can't be 23 on Induction Day), or gay people (who are thrown out) or foreign students (other than the dozen or so sent by client governments).
    It means applicants checked a box on their application that says they are Hispanic, African American, Native American, and now, since my time on the Admissions Board of the Academy, where I've taught for 22 years, Asians.
    Midshipmen are admitted by two tracks. White applicants out of high school who are not also athletic recruits typically need grades of A and B and minimum SAT scores of 600 on each part for the Board to vote them "qualified." Athletics and leadership also count.
    A vote of "qualified" for a white applicant doesn't mean s/he's coming, only that he or she can compete to win the "slate" of up to 10 nominations that (most typically) a Congress(wo)man draws up. That means that nine "qualified" white applicants are rejected. SAT scores below 600 or C grades almost always produce a vote of "not qualified" for white applicants.
    Not so for an applicant who self-identifies as one of the minorities who are our "number one priority." For them, another set of rules apply. Their cases are briefed separately to the board, and SAT scores to the mid-500s with quite a few Cs in classes (and no visible athletics or leadership) typically produce a vote of "qualified" for them, with direct admission to Annapolis .
    They're in, and are given a pro forma nomination to make it legit. 
    Minority applicants with scores and grades down to the 300s with Cs and Ds (and no particular leadership or athletics) also come, though after a remedial year at our taxpayer-supported remedial school, the Naval Academy Preparatory School.
    By using NAPS as a feeder, we've virtually eliminated all competition for "diverse" candidates: in theory they have to get a C average at NAPS to come to USNA, but this is regularly re-negotiated.
    All this is probably unconstitutional. That's what the Supreme Court said about the University   of Michigan 's two-track admissions in 2003. 
    Once at Annapolis , "diverse" midshipmen are over-represented in our pre-college classes, in lower-track courses, in mandatory tutoring programs and less challenging majors. Many struggle to master basic concepts. (I teach some of these courses.)
    Of course, some minority students are stellar, but they're the exception. 
    Despite being dragged toward the finish line, minorities graduate at about a 10 percent lower rate than the whole class, which of course includes them (so the real split is greater).
    Don't want to believe me? Have a lawyer sit in on a year's worth of Admissions Board deliberations. Or better still, pray that one of the stellar white students rejected to give a seat to a "diverse" candidate sues us. That's the only way taxpayers will ever fully understand the price to them of "putting diversity first."
    The writer is an English professor at the Naval Academy .

 

6/11/09 Sacramento Bee: “Ward Connerly: UC admission plan allows discrimination,”
    About five years ago, shortly before my term ended as a regent of the University of California , I was having a conversation with a high-ranking UC administrator about a proposal he was developing to increase "diversity" at UC within the dictates of California 's Constitution and the prohibition against race, gender and ethnic preferences.
    I asked him why he considered it important to tinker with admissions instead of just letting the chips fall where they may. In an unguarded moment, he told me that unless the university took steps to "guide" admissions decisions, UC would be dominated by Asians. When I asked, "What would be wrong with that?" I got an answer that speaks volumes about the underlying philosophy at many universities with regard to Asian enrollment.
    The UC administrator told me that Asians are "too dull – they study, study, study." He then said, "If you ever say I said this, I will have to deny it." I won't betray the individual's anonymity because to do so would put him in a world of trouble. Yet, it is time to confront the not-so-subtle hand of discrimination against Asians that masquerades as "building diversity" at many campuses. 
    It is a mistake to believe that all forms of discrimination flow from hate and inherently foul motives. Certainly, the desire to attract more black students to a campus that is lacking in blacks is not an evil aspiration; however, when it becomes necessary to reject those who "study, study, study" in order to admit those who study insufficiently, then the mission to include more blacks becomes a much more ominous one.
    Since the passage of Proposition 209 in 1996, Asian enrollment at UC has skyrocketed. For example, UC Berkeley has a 42 percent Asian undergraduate enrollment; UC Irvine is at 55 percent; UC Riverside is 43 percent; and UC Los Angeles is 38 percent. The overall percentage in the nine undergraduate UC campuses is more than 40 percent, in a state where the Asian population is about 13 percent. Thus, Asians are excelling under policies that emphasize and reward academic achievement at a ratio that is more than three times their actual statewide population.
    As the percentage of Asians has skyrocketed, there is no question that UC administrators and social engineers on the UC faculty have become increasingly alarmed and feel a sense of obligation to do something and, clearly, the only way to reduce the Asian presence is to de-emphasize academic achievement.
    In recent months, the UC regents have deliberated about – and approved – a proposal that would significantly revise the admissions policies of the university. Beginning in 2012, UC will no longer automatically admit the top 12.5 percent of all students based on statewide performance and will no longer place the reliance that is currently placed on grades and test scores.
    Instead, the eligibility pool will be expanded by a projected 40 percent by eliminating the requirement for applicants to take the SAT subject matter tests. The net effect of these changes is that academic achievement will be less significant and UC admissions administrators will have the "flexibility" to discriminate against those allegedly "dull" Asians.
    As is generally the case, the UC faculty was well aware of the probable effect of its proposed changes. Until now, it was certain that any change in policies that would adversely affect Asians would go unchallenged by Asians. The so-called Asian civil rights groups, such as Chinese for Affirmative Action, that purport to represent the interest of Asians have not served their communities with distinction. Having cast their lot with the "diversity" and inclusion crowd, they have looked the other way when Asians have been the victims of blatant discrimination. The absence of a squeaky wheel demanding grease allowed the UC faculty and regents to roll right along with their proposal and to approve it.
    The proposed UC admissions policies are so egregious and so dramatically discriminatory against Asians that these groups could not remain silent – and have credibility within their communities – as the grass-roots opposition from within specific Asians groups began to surface. It is noteworthy that what concerns these groups most is not the discriminatory effects of UC's proposals upon Asians, or the prospect of more blacks and Latinos being admitted, but the possibility that those devilish whites might stand to benefit from the changes. As one Asian advocate put it, "It is patently unreasonable to herald any sort of increase in student diversity if it comes with an increase in white students; this is unacceptable."
    There is one truth that is universally applicable in the era of "diversity," especially in American universities: an absolute unwillingness to accept the verdict of color-blind policies. Until that fact changes, UC and other American institutions will continue trying to fix that which is not broken to achieve their arrogant version of "diversity," by discriminating against those "dull" Asians, such as two of my grandchildren whose mother is half-Vietnamese. 
    Ward Connerly is president of the American Civil Rights Institute and a former regent of the University of California . He is the author of a newly released memoir, "Lessons From My Uncle James."

6/10/09 New York Post: "Two Teens Targeting Asians Arraigned for Murder,"
by Kirsten Fleming, Philip Messing and Andy Geller
    Two Asian-hating teen pals, one the stepson of a cop, have been busted for robbing and brutally beating and strangling a Chinese newspaper executive, police said today.
    Corey Azor, 16, of Queens, and Chris Levy, 17, of Harlem - who targeted other Asians before - were arrested in with the murder of David Kao, 49, whose body was found Saturday in Flushing.
    After the slaying, they said they went joy riding in Kao's car for two days.
    Kao, who lived in Elmhurst , was a marketing executive at World Journal, the largest Chinese-language daily newspaper in the U.S.
    His 21-year-old daughter attends college in Taiwan .
    "He's a humble guy who brings happiness too everybody," coworker James Yam said of Kao.
    The teens, who met in junior high school, were charged with second-degree murder, first- and second-degree robbery, and criminal possession of stolen property.
    They face 25 years to life if convicted.
    They are expected to be charged with using similar tactics to rob another Asian man last month.
    Friends said Kao had eaten at a Korean restaurant with a friend Friday evening.
    He was dozing in the driver's seat of his sister's 2000 Lexus SUV, which was double-parked in front of his ex-wife's Flushing home when the thugs spotted him at 1 a.m. Saturday, police said.
    Azor - whose stepfather is assigned to NYPD's automotive unit - and Levy broke into the car and put Kao into a choke hold and then dragged him into the back seat.
    "I continued to hold him in the headlock and punch him in the face and then he stopped moving," court papers quote Levy as telling detectives.
    The deadly duo callously dumped his body on the street, emptied his wallet of cash and spent the next two days joy riding with a gaggle of teen friends, prosecutors said.
    They were busted on Monday.
    Yam said coworkers tried to call Kao on his cell phone Saturday after he didn't show up to play badminton. After that, they called cops.
    Cops said Azor later confessed that that he, Levy and 17-year-old Keron Wilthshire robbed Jin Tong Yuan of $60 and his cell phone on May 27.
    They followed the victim into the elevator of a Flushing building and when he tried to run, Wiltshire put him in a headlock and Levy held a silver pistol up Yuan's head, police said.
    Wiltshire later claimed it was toy gun.
    The robbery was captured on a surveillance camera and the images used to track down the suspects, police said.
    Azor, a student at Flushing HS, and Levy, a tenth grader at Robert Kennedy HS, were held without bail in Kao's brutal murder.
    Wilthshire, who attends Bryant has a prior assault arrest on his rap sheet, was held on $75,000 bail in the Yuan robbery, for which he was charged with first- and second-degree robbery and third-degree criminal possession of stolen property.
    Queens District Attorney Richard Brown called Kao's slaying a "senseless and brutal crime" that shows "complete disregard for human life."


6/10/09 Asian American Action Fund of Greater Chicago:
    We are deeply saddened by the loss of The Honorable Sandra R. Otaka. She passed away in her home on June 6, 2009. She gave her time and energy selflessly to the Asian American community.  She was an extraordinary leader, a trailblazer, and a friend and mentor to many. She also taught us the importance of APA political empowerment and to be politically savvy. Her candidacy for Cook County judge in the 9th subcircuit is a textbook example for future APA candidates running for office. Judge Otaka will be greatly missed.
    Judge Otaka was the first Asian American to be appointed to the bench by the Illinois Supreme Court.  Her appointment marked a significant milestone, as she was one of only four Asian American judges in the State of Illinois , and only one of two Asian American judges sitting on the Circuit Court of Cook County . She won her election in the 9th subcircuit in 2002, and became the first Asian American to be elected judge in Cook County . Throughout her career, she worked on the issue of diversity in the judiciary, so that Asian Americans had representation. 
    Prior to her appointment, Judge Otaka served as a Section Chief for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for more than a decade, and was a litigation associate at Sidley & Austin, specializing in product liability.
    Judge Otaka received her B.A. from the University of California , Berkeley , and her J.D. from UCLA School of Law.  Throughout law school and her legal career, Judge Otaka has remained steadfastly dedicated to the Asian American community, focusing particularly on increasing diversity and preserving human rights. The Chicago Reporter stated in a 2002 article that she gained a reputation for taking on causes that she believed in, whether they were popular or not, like fighting to legalize acupuncture, tangling with politicians over the land rights of a Cambodian temple, and helping to draft the Cook County Human Rights Ordinance. She built coalitions across ethnic lines and became politically savvy.
    A few of the many leadership positions she has occupied have been: Chair of the Asian American Advisory Committee to State Comptroller Dan Hynes, Chair of the Chicago Bar Association, Council on Minority Affairs, Member of the Cook County Commission on Human Rights, Vice President of the Asian American Bar Association of the Greater Chicago area and a longtime Board Member of the Japanese American Service Committee.
    Judge Otaka was appointed by Illinois Supreme Court Justice Benjamin Miller as the only Asian American on the prestigious Solovy Commission in 1992 and was chosen by Governor Jim Edgar in 1997 as the first Asian American to serve on the Judicial Inquiry Board, of which she eventually became Chair.  Judge Otaka also served as Chair to Senator Paul Simon's Asian American Advisory Committee.  Through her efforts, the State's Minority Teaching Scholarship program was expanded to include Asians and Native Americans.
    Judge Otaka has been the recipient of numerous awards including The Vanguard Award in 2004 for making the law and legal profession more accessible to and reflective of the community at large, the Pan Asian American of the Year Award from the Asian American Coalition in 1994, the Martin Luther King Community Leadership Award by Cook County Board President John Stroger in 1995, the City of Chicago Human Relations Award in 1999 as well as three regional awards from the U.S. EPA.
    Sandra Otaka was the proud and loving mother of Jeffrey Otaka.  She is also survived by her sister Susan Smith. Our deepest condolences to Jeffrey and her family.  
    A public memorial service has been scheduled as follows:
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
6:30 pm
Union League Club
65 West Jackson Blvd. ,  Chicago
    Contributions in memory of Sandra can be sent as follows:
"Glenview State Bank for the Jeffrey Otaka Account"
Mail to:
Glenview State Bank
800 Waukegan Road
Glenview , IL   60025  



5/28/2009 Queens , NY Chronicle: “Liu’s aide John Choe wants to succeed boss,”
by Liz Rhoades, Managing Editor
    Joining a crowded field of contenders, John Choe, chief of staff for John Liu, announced Monday he wants to replace his boss in the City Council.
    Although he is facing at least six other Democratic opponents in the race for Flushing ’s District 20 City Council seat, Choe appears to be the anointed one. He was endorsed by the Queens Democratic Party on Tuesday morning and the candidate says he has Liu’s support, “100 percent.”
    Liu could run for re-election but has decided to seek the city comptroller position. The Queens Democrats also endorsed Liu in his race.
    Choe, 30, was born in Korea and raised in Australia . He moved to the United States with his family in the 1980s, settling in Staten Island .
    His announcement was made at the Macedonia A.M.E. Church in Flushing , a historic black church, where he has garnered the support of its minister, the Rev. Nicholas Tweed. With the candidate were several community leaders of various ethnicities, signalling his wide-ranging support.
    “John has a clear vision and a proven track record of service,” Tweed said. “He possesses all the qualities of a fine City Council member and has been active on every major issue affecting this community.”
    Choe’s key issues are affordable housing, good schools and a fair share of city services. “Our community has played an important role as a center of religious freedom and cultural diversity,” he said. “These are the American values that our men and women in uniform are fighting to protect and what I hope to uphold as the next City Council member.”
    So far, his opponents include two other Korean-American and two Chinese-American candidates. Although those running downplay the ethnic aspect, some believe they could split the Asian vote, allowing another candidate to win the primary.
    Choe disputes that theory. “I am not only a Korean candidate,” he said. “Asians are not the majority vote in Flushing .”
    He believes the more candidates the better, since it will give voters plenty of choices. However, he would not be surprised if some candidates decide to pull out of the race following the county endorsement.
    Choe is stepping down this week as Liu’s chief of staff to run his campaign full-time. One of his first efforts will be in fundraising, since he admits needing more money to qualify for matching funds.
    A graduate of SUNY Binghamton, Choe earned his master’s degree at the University of Chicago . He worked for the city Department of Finance, Corporation for Supportive Housing, city Rent Guidelines Board and the Rainbow Center , a shelter and community center for Korean women in Queens .
    He joined Liu’s staff as legislative director in 2001 and also serves as co-president of the Mitchell-Linden Civic Association and is a board member of the Democratic Organization of Flushing.
    Choe believes his experience working for Liu and as a civic leader puts him in the forefront. “I have connections with civic groups and my strength is in the community,” he said. “They know who I am and I will not need on-the-job training.”
    He credits Liu as a great mentor, who taught him to bring people together and hold city agencies accountable. “I want to continue this,” Choe said. “And John has been very effective in bringing home the bacon for schools and social service agencies.”
    He is an advocate of safety in neighborhoods, which includes increasing job opportunities for young people and making them a part of the community.
    Choe also wants a sustainable community by maintaining the area’s quality of life. “Growth is not enough without providing additional classrooms, transit options and an improved infrastructure,” he said.
    Perhaps the greatest thing he learned from Liu was bringing the community together. “Working together and looking for common solutions” are the keys, he said.
    Because of his work experience, Choe believes he has a record of achievement, adding, “I’ll advocate from day one.”
    Regarding mayoral control of schools, the candidate believes accountability is important, “but parents feel they don’t have a meaningful role and that’s not good. They are an integral part of the community.”
    Working for Liu his entire eight years in office, Choe says he will follow his boss’s playbook in his quest for the City Council position — in part. “I have big shoes to fill, but I have my own style,” he concluded.

5/21/09 Wall Street Journal: “Asian Candidate Leads in Latino Stronghold,”
by Miriam Jordan
    Los Angeles -- A Chinese-American woman looks likely to take the congressional seat vacated by Labor Secretary Hilda Solis in a district that has been a traditional stronghold of Latino political power.
    Judy Chu, vice chairwoman of the state's Board of Equalization, outpolled state Sen. Gil Cedillo, a seasoned Latino politician, to become the top vote-getter in a special election held Tuesday for
California's 32nd congressional district. Ms. Chu's results fells short of the majority required to avert a runoff on July 14.
    In a contest in which only 6% of the 246,000 eligible voters turned out, Ms. Chu was aided by a strong showing from Emanuel Pleitez, a 26-year-old political newcomer.
    Mr. Pleitez, a former banker and Obama campaign staffer, combined old-style door-to-door campaigning with online fund raising to win third place. But he also effectively split the Latino vote with Mr. Cedillo.
    "Pleitez was the effective spoiler for Cedillo's bid," says Allan Hoffenblum, a Republican political consultant. "His total votes were much greater in number than the margin of victory that Chu had over
Cedillo."
    With 100% of precincts fully or partially reporting, Ms. Chu had 15,338 votes to Mr. Cedillo's 11,244 and 6,509 for Mr. Pleitez.
    Nearly half of the registered voters are Latino in the district, which includes parts of Eastern Los Angeles and towns in the San Gabriel Valley . But the area is 20% Asian and home to a burgeoning Chinese
and Vietnamese population.
    Despite their growing numbers, Asians aren't a majority in any U.S. congressional district. In Los Angeles , they have wielded less political clout than Latinos, who are traditionally active in labor and community organizations.
    Both Ms. Chu and Mr. Cedillo are liberal Democrats with deep ties to the labor movement.
    Ms. Chu, 55 years old, is a former mayor of Monterey Park , a town in the district, and a former state assemblywoman. Her campaign touted her experience. She raised nearly $1 million, outdoing all rivals.
    Ms. Chu now faces a potentially awkward contest in the runoff against a Republican candidate who shares her surname, Betty Chu. However, the Republican isn't expected to present much of a challenge in a district
where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans two-to-one.

5/20/09 AFP: “US senators seek to reunite torn immigrant families,”
    Washington (AFP) — US senators on Wednesday reintroduced legislation aimed at bringing together immigrant families who are often torn apart for years due to a severe backlog.
    The bill stalled last year in Congress but the political climate has changed since the inauguration of President Barack Obama, who hopes to launch a drive to overhaul the immigration system this year.
    The bill, introduced by senators including Democratic Party icon Ted Kennedy, would put a priority on giving visas to US residents' spouses and minor children overseas.
    It would provide more slots for immigrants by putting unused visas -- which were not assigned due to the creaky system -- back into the pool.
    The bill would also give priority to World War II veterans from the Philippines along with their children.
    It marks the latest measure to make amends with the group. Obama earlier signed into law a measure restoring benefits to Filipino veterans, who fought alongside US forces but were stripped of payments after the war.
    The family bill has been championed by Asian-American groups, which say visa applicants from some nations face waits of more than 20 years. US law forbids them from visiting the United States while their applications are pending.
    Senator Robert Menendez, another sponsor of the bill, said that the United States had "clear societal and economic reasons" to put a priority on reuniting families.
    "Strong, unified immigrant families help maintain stable communities and tend to work hard, pay taxes and start businesses that create jobs," he said.
    A similar bill will be introduced shortly in the House, according to the Asian American Justice Center, an advocacy group.
    Obama has given few details on his eventual plans for immigration reform. But as a candidate he called for undocumented immigrants to have the chance to clear their status, provided they enter the process behind legal immigrants, learn English and pay a fine.

5/20/2009 San Jose Mercury News: "Despite their success, Asians not rising to heights of Silicon Valley 's corporate world,"
by Mike Swift
    In Silicon Valley, "Asian" and "success" often seem synonymous.
    Asians lead all racial groups in levels of education and income, and they are a quarter or more of undergraduates at elite universities like Stanford
and the University of California-Berkeley. Last week, the Census Bureau said Santa Clara County had the largest annual Asian population growth in the United States — for the third successive year.
    But an eye-opening first-of-its-kind "census" of local executives shows that while Asians make up more than a third of the work force at some of Silicon Valley's biggest tech companies, they are far less prominent in the boardroom or the highest executive offices: Asians represent about 6 percent of board members and about 10 percent of corporate officers of the Bay Area's 25 largest companies.
    Among the 25 largest Bay Area companies by revenue, 12 had no Asian board members, and five had no Asian corporate officers, according to the new study. Despite the growing prominence of Asians 
at Silicon Valley tech companies — Asians are least 23 percent of the work force at Cisco Systems, Intel, Sun Microsystems, eBay and Advanced Micro Devices, according to a Mercury News review of 
documents filed with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — they have made no gains in the share of seats on the boards of large tech companies since 1999.
    "There is an underlying belief in the Asian community that there is a corporate glass ceiling," said Buck Gee, a retired Cisco vice president and former Silicon Valley CEO who co-authored the study. He and Wes Hom, a retired IBM vice president who was also the senior chair of the company's Asian Diversity Task Force program, built their survey from company data on Web sites and SEC filings from the third quarter of 2008. "This has been talked about in the Asian community for a long time."
    Gee began asking where all the Asian CEOs were back in 2006, when the resignation of two Chinese vice presidents caused him take a look around at Cisco. To his shock, he realized he was the only Chinese vice president in the San Jose networking giant's product 
development organization.
    "I thought, 'That can't be right,' " Gee said. But it was.
    Asians are better represented among the leadership of Bay Area companies compared with all Fortune 500 companies, Gee and Hom say, but the Bay Area also has the highest percentage Asian population among the nation's big metro areas. They place much of the blame for Asian non-advancement not on big companies, but on limiting factors within Asian culture and the failure of Asian executives to mentor talented younger colleagues.
    "It's mostly our fault," Gee said of the small numbers of Asians at the helm of the Bay Area's biggest companies. "It's mostly up to us to figure out the skills we need to develop, and to get those skills."
    The issue is front and center at a forum today at The Indus Entrepreneurs in Santa Clara , featuring a panel including Gee and executives from Cisco, Intel and Nektar. The forum, along with Gee and Hom's research, is a joint program with the Asia Society of Northern 
California and Ascend, an Asian business group.
    Gee and Hom and a small group of executives are organizing a Corporate Executive Initiative, hoping to work with Bay Area companies to foster the career development of promising younger Asian workers.
    The executive census and a related paper — "The Failure of Asian Success in the Bay Area" — say several social factors hold Asian managers back, including cultural deference to superiors, which U.S.
managers may view as a worker lacking confidence or knowledge; a lack of strong English skills; and a failure of some Asian workers to invest enough effort in networking.
    While East Asian cultures and educational systems tend to encourage technical excellence and respect for authority, they may not do as good a job developing leadership and communication skills, Gee and Hom say.
    "The culture says you don't have to raise your hand — just do a good job," Hom said.
    Among the 100 largest Bay Area companies, Gee and Hom found 13 Asian CEOs. But six were the founders of their company.
    The list of companies without Asian corporate officers includes Apple, AMD and Symantec, according to the study. The list of companies without an Asian board member includes Intel, Oracle, Chevron, eBay and Symantec. 
    Given the high-profile successes of a few Asian entrepreneurs like Yahoo cofounder Jerry Yang, and with so many Asians who are mid-level managers, the lack of top executives is "a problem hidden in plain
view," the study says.
    "Everybody agrees this is the case, but very few Asians are willing to come out and make a stink about it," said Jane Hyun, an executive coach and multicultural leadership strategist, and the author of 
"The Bamboo Ceiling," a 2005 book about the limits on Asian career advancement. "You don't see an Asian Al Sharpton-type figure out  there. You don't see people making waves that we haven't really reached these positions." 
    Cisco, which has one Asian board member, is trying to unearth the management talents of its Asian workers.
    The company has created a "Cisco Asian Affinity Network," which helps employees develop their business, communication and influence skills. "Diversity and inclusion is a top priority for Cisco," said 
spokesman Ken Lotich, echoing the statements of many companies.
    Hyun and others say the situation is not limited to business. At Stanford University , Asians made up 24 percent of the undergraduate Class of 2008. But university officials acknowledge they have no record of having an Asian academic administrator above
the level of department head in the school's history.
    Gee and Hom say their goal is to launch a dialogue about how Asians can fully contribute their business talents. 
    Nevertheless, Hyun said U.S. business culture can limit Asian advancement if existing leaders are unfamiliar with leadership styles from other parts of the world.
    "Organizations want you to demonstrate leadership in a certain way," Hyun said. "There is definitely a pressure to be like the senior leaders that are already in place."

5/20/09 Los Angeles Times: “ Chu defeats Cedillo in 32nd Congressional District,”
by Jean Merl
    State Board of Equalization Vice Chairwoman Judy Chu won the most votes Tuesday for the open 32nd Congressional District seat, running well ahead of fellow Democrat state Sen. Gil Cedillo, but she fell short of the majority needed to avoid a runoff.
    Political newcomer Emanuel Pleitez, who surprised politics watchers with his significant fundraising and campaign of personal contacts and energetic
volunteers, was running a strong third. Monterey Park Councilwoman Betty Tom Chu was first among the three Republicans on the ballot in the strongly Democratic district.
    "I'm really excited, and I feel so honored by the votes of the people in the district," Judy Chu said at her victory party at Nick's Taste of Texas restaurant in Covina as the ballot tallying neared an end.
    Judy Chu, a Chinese American, campaigned on her experience and deep roots in the district and worked to build coalitions across ethnic lines.  She will face a Republican and a Libertarian in a runoff.
    Among the few local races on Tuesday's ballot, the congressional district race was widely watched because of its test of ethnic politics.
    The hotly contested special election in the San Gabriel Valley-based district featured 12 names on the ballot and at least one write-in candidate.
    There will be a runoff July 14 among the top vote-getters from each of the parties in the race. Because the district is strongly Democratic, however, it
is widely expected that the seat ultimately will go to the Democrat. The seat, one of the few area elected offices without term limits, opened unexpectedly
with the appointment of Hilda Solis as U.S. labor secretary.
    From the start, the race was generally seen as a two-way contest between Cedillo, a labor union leader before his 1998 election to the state Assembly
and later the state Senate, and Chu , a former member of the Monterey Park City Council and the Assembly.
    Both are liberal Democrats with similar views and strong ties to labor in the working-class district. But their candidacies were testing the power of ethnic
politics in the district, home to large numbers of Latinos -- about half the registered voters -- and a growing population of Asian Americans.
    Cedillo, backed by such local politicians as Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina and Sheriff Lee Baca, worked to mobilize his Latino base. He raised about $717,000.
    Chu, trying forge a multi- ethnic coalition, had backing from Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, Rep. Diane Watson (D- Los Angeles ) and a
host of elected officials from San Gabriel Valley cities and school boards.
    Chu, who raised nearly $1 million, also had the support of the California Democratic Party and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, which spent about $150,000 campaigning on her behalf.
    The United Farmworkers Union endorsed both Cedillo and Chu, which some saw as an indication of conflicting loyalties within labor.
    Christopher M. Agrella, the only Libertarian on the ballot, was guaranteed a spot in the July runoff.

5/18/09 Boston Globe: “Yoon looks beyond Boston to enlist backers,”
by Michael Levenson
   Washington - The California congressman looked out on a crowd of 100 Asian-American political activists dining in a drab conference room at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee.  Mike Honda urged them to donate to a rising star on the political
scene: Sam Yoon, candidate for mayor of Boston .
    " Boston has been waiting for a long time because the Irish have had it," said Honda, addressing the annual dinner of the Asian American Action Fund. "I believe Sam is ready to take over and lead one of the major cities in the country."
    Yoon beamed. Such dinners have become crucial to his aspirations to become mayor of Boston, fueling him with applause, cheers, and financial support that are harder to come by at home, where Mayor Thomas M. Menino dominates the political establishment and where Yoon remains a relatively low-profile figure, unknown to 38 percent of residents, according to a recent Globe poll.
    He has been working hard to cultivate the support, traveling the country to meet Asian-American political activists, who have enthusiastically embraced his campaign and showered him with donations. Many say Yoon, who became Boston 's first Asian-American
city councilor in 2005, represents a promising new voice from a group that has been historically underrepresented in government.
    "He's a trailblazer in his own time," said Bel Leong-Hong, chairwoman-elect of the Asian American Action Fund, which endorsed Yoon's mayoral campaign and his 2005 and 2007 council campaigns.
"What our organization is about is creating the pipeline to national office, and he's certainly in that pipeline."
    Yoon has held few public campaign events in Boston , and last week his only public events were on Saturday, aides said. Yet over the past year he has courted donors in California, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Chicago, and has more trips planned to Washington, D.C., Chicago, and Atlanta . His rainmaking has helped him be competitive in the mayor's race. Since January, Yoon has raised $151,158, 52 percent of it from donors outside Massachusetts .
    Still, because Yoon has been spending heavily, he has just $31,422 in his campaign account, far less than Menino's $1.4 million war chest.  His campaign is worried about the perception that he lacks substantial
support from local donors.
    Jim Spencer, Yoon's strategist, said the campaign is in an "awkward position," forced to travel outside Boston because many local donors are reluctant to snub Menino.
    "We've called hundreds of donors who say, 'I'd love to love to see Yoon as mayor, but I can't do this. I'm afraid,' " Spencer said. Even so, he said, the campaign recently collected commitments of $25 to $70 from 145
donors in Boston . "I don't want anybody to think we finance everything out of the city, because we don't," Spencer said.
    Yoon confronted the issue in Washington on Wednesday night.
    "I am proud of every single dollar, because you're not a developer," Yoon told the crowd of mostly young lawyers, activists and congressional staffers.
"You're not a construction company. You're not a vendor who has business before the city. The mayor does not write your paycheck. Your motivation is the purest motivation there is which is, you are just proud of who I am."
    Yoon, 39, who was born in South Korea , is already among the most prominent Korean-Americans in elected office, along with the mayors of Irvine, Calif. , and Edison , N.J. He has used his stature to raise his profile as a political activist.
    Last year, Yoon founded a political action group, Asian Political Leadership Fund, which has raised $120,000 - $100,000 from a Korean-American hedge fund manager in New Jersey and $20,000 from Bernard Chiu, a Boston businessman who runs First Act Guitar Studio.
    Yoon has spent $60,000 from the fund to run ads in Asian-language newspapers for candidates nationwide, including Hubert Vo, a Vietnamese-
American state representative in Texas; Ashwin Madia, an Indian-American Iraq war veteran who ran unsuccessfully for Congress in Minnesota ; and
Barack Obama.
    "He's not going to limit his ambitions to Boston," said Annabel Park, a filmmaker and activist who attended the dinner. "Hopefully, he'll run for higher office."
    Yoon was featured prominently at the event. He told the crowd he is challenging Secretary of State William F. Galvin to have the names of candidates printed in Chinese on election ballots.
    The organizers announced that they would sponsor a summer intern to work on Yoon's campaign and joked that it would be President Obama.  They brought Yoon before the crowd and auctioned off a breakfast with
him in Washington , which went to five attendees who bid $300 each.
    Honda, who is vice chairman of the Democratic National Committee, asked everyone to donate to Yoon. "The good news is that he has all the money he needs to run his campaign," Honda declared. "The bad news is, it's still in your pockets. So open up your pockets and talk to your friends and ask your relatives and everybody else to do the same."
    Yoon, who traveled with his finance director, Frank Woodruff, was at ease in the crowd, laughing, mingling, exchanging business cards and delivering a powerful exhortation on Asian-American political empowerment.
    "We don't have time to lose," he told the crowd. "We are the community in this country who is the least represented in the halls of government, who have the least amount of experience in campaigns and politics. That's just a fact. And yet our history goes back to 150 years, when the Chinese came and built the railroads. We have to catch up. So there is no time to lose.
Now is the time."

5/7/09 Congressional Quarterly Politics: “Loretta Sanchez Endorses Chu in California 32,”
By Jonathan Allen and Rachel Kapochunas, CQ Staff 
    California Democrat Loretta Sanchez is breaking with her fellow Hispanic House members again — this time by endorsing Judy Chu, who is Asian American, in the race to succeed Labor Secretary Hilda L. Solis in
California’s 32nd District.
    The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) has rallied behind state Sen. Gil Cedillo, the most prominent Latino candidate in the May 19 special 
election race. 
    But Chu, a member of the state Board of Equalization, has picked up support from some significant local Latino officials, including Los Angeles 
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Now, she has added Sanchez to her team.
    Not only is Sanchez’s endorsement a break from Hispanic lawmakers but it’s a break from her sister, fellow California congresswoman Linda T. 
Sánchez , who has donated money to Cedillo. Updated fundraising totals for the 32nd District race are due to be filed Thursday.
    “The congresswoman and Judy Chu have been longtime friends, and she has endorsed her in all of her races,” said Adrienne Elrod, chief of staff for 
Loretta Sanchez .
    The sisters had a public split with the CHC in 2007 charging that Chairman Joe Baca , a California Democrat, had demeaned women, abused the group’s political action committee and held improper elections. 
Linda Sanchez re-established her membership with the caucus at the beginning of the current Congress, but her sister did not rejoin.
    The May 19 primary will be the race’s deciding factor since the Democrat who emerges from the contest will be heavily favored to win the Los Angeles-area seat. 
    The preferences and turnout of the district’s ethnic communities are widely regarded as major deciding factors in the race. According to the 2000 census, 62 percent of district residents are Hispanic, 18 percent are Asian, and 15 percent are white.
    A total of 12 candidates have qualified to appear on the ballot. Candidates of all parties will appear on the same ballot and if no candidate receives a majority May 19 (an expected outcome, due to the number of 
candidates competing) the top vote-getter from each party will face off in a July 14 election.


5/6/09 The Orange County Register: “Van Tran launches campaign against Rep. Loretta Sanchez, GOP challenger was recruited by D.C. leaders in what may be one of 2010's hottest races,”
By Martin Wisckol
    Setting the stage for what is expected to be one of the nation’s hottest Congressional races of 2010, Assemblyman Van Tran announced today that he will challenge seven-term Democratic Rep. Loretta Sanchez.
    Tran had been recruited heavily by Washington GOP leaders, who consider central Orange County’s 47th Congressional District one of their best chances for gaining a seat next year.
    “Both sides will be pouring resources into this,” Tran said in anticipation of a heavily funded drive.
    Democrats have a 12.4 percentage point advantage in the central county district and Sanchez is popular there, winning by 44 percentage points in 2008, 25 percentage points in 2006, and 21 percentage points in 2004. And Barack Obama carried the district last year, but Arnold Schwarzenegger won there in 2006 and George W. Bush won there in 2004.
    Sanchez indicated she was ready to take on Tran.
    “I’ve always welcomed a spirited debate about the issues confronting our communities,” Sanchez said in an email responding to Tran’s announcement today. “I have always been an independent voice for the 
people of Orange County . I have consistently fought hard to make our communities safer, improve our schools, protect our seniors, create jobs, and lower the tax burden on the middle class.”
    Sanchez isn’t the only one trying to sound a non-partisan note.
    “Tran transcends Republican politics, and he will be able to reach out to independents and moderate Democrats,” said Rep. Kevin McCarthy, head
of recruitment for the National Republican Congressional Committee, in an interview with Politico.com. “This is one of the top people I’ve gone after since the very beginning.”
    Sen. John McCain, House Minority Leader John Boehner and Minority Whip Eric Cantor also encouraged Tran to run.
    The area has twice as many Latinos as Vietnamese Americans, but Vietnamese Americans turn out to vote in greater numbers - so much so that the two top vote getters in the county supervisor race there have been
Vietnamese Americans in the two most recent elections.
    The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee - Democrats’ counterpart to the NRCC and a likely source of major campaign funds - noted that Sanchez has been particularly attentive to that concerns of the Vietnamese community.
    “From Day One, Congresswoman Sanchez has worked hard to be an independent voice for her constituents in Orange County, even co-founding
the Congressional Caucus on Vietnam,” said Andrew Stone of the DCCC.  “Assemblymember Tran’s been office shopping for quite some time now. But given Congresswoman Sanchez’s strong record of serving her constituents, it’s clear she’ll be back next Congress.”
    Tran has long been a groundbreaker in Vietnamese American politics, and has openly dreamed of serving in Congress since he was an aide to Sanchez’s predecessor, Republican Bob Dornan. He was a Garden Grove councilman and then became first Vietnamese American elected to the state legislature, where he is now termed out.
    While McCarthy spoke of Tran as rising above partisan politics, several of the candidate's key positions have a distinctly GOP ring – including his 
opposition to the bank bailouts.
    “It’s a blank check the government has written on the backs of taxpayers,” he said. He similarly opposes the current approach to rescuing GM and Chrysler.
    “The level of government intervention is unprecedented to the point where the administration can force executives to resign,” he said. “That is not the role of government.”
    He also took a shot at Sanchez.
    “The district needs a real representative and not a rubber stamp for (House Speaker) Nancy Pelosi,” he said. “I know the area, I know the people and I believe I will do a better job representing the district.”

4/28/09 news10.net: “Vigil Held for Journalist Detained in North Korea,”
by Nicole Chavez
    Sacramento, CA - A vigil was held Tuesday night at Del Campo High School for detained journalist Laura Ling and her colleague Euna Lee.  Ling is a 1994 alumnus of the school.
    Ling and Lee are under arrest in North Korea facing charges including espionage after they were arrested while covering a story about North Korean refugees near the North Korean and China border. The journalists are reporters for San Francisco-based Current-TV.
    "I fear for her safety," said Stephanie Tomasegovich, a long-time friend of Ling's. "Are they feeding her? Are they hurting her?" she questioned.
    More than one hundred members of the community, friends and former teachers of Ling held candles and told stories of Ling's tenacity and passion for journalism. "I reflected on the years she spent on the newspaper staff, even then trying to tell the stories she felt needed to be told," said one of her former teachers.
    Vigil organizers said they had hoped the gathering would keep Ling and Lee's story front and center until the two are released. If convicted on the espionage charge, however, the women could face at least five years in prison.
    Laura Ling is the sister of TV personality and fellow Sacramento native Lisa Ling. Some of Ling's family members attended Tuesday's vigil. They said they couldn't go into detail regarding Ling's ordeal due to the sensitive nature of the case, but did want to express thanks for the community's support and prayers.

4/25/09 Associated Press: “New UC admissions policy angers Asian-Americans,”
by Terence Chea
    San Francisco (AP) — A new admissions policy set to take effect at the University of California system in three years is raising fears among Asian-Americans that it will reduce their numbers on campus, where they account for 40 percent of all undergraduates.
    University officials say the new standards — the biggest change in UC admissions since 1960 — are intended to widen the pool of high school applicants and make the process more fair.
    But Asian-American advocates, parents and lawmakers are angrily calling on the university to rescind the policy, which will apply at all nine of the system's undergraduate campuses.
    They point to a UC projection that the new standards would sharply reduce Asian-American admissions while resulting in little change for blacks and Hispanics, and a big gain for white students.
    "I like to call it affirmative action for whites," said Ling-chi Wang, a retired professor at UC Berkeley. "I think it's extremely unfair to Asian-Americans on the one hand and underrepresented minorities on the other."
    Asian-Americans are the single largest ethnic group among UC's 173,000 undergraduates. In 2008, they accounted for 40 percent at UCLA and 43 percent at UC Berkeley — the two most selective campuses in the UC system — as well as 50 percent at UC San Diego and 54 percent at UC Irvine.
    Asian-Americans are about 12 percent of California 's population and 4 percent of the U.S. population overall.
    The new policy, approved unanimously by the UC Board of Regents in February, will greatly expand the applicant pool, eliminate the requirement that applicants take two SAT subject tests and reduce the number of students guaranteed admission based on grades and test scores alone. It takes effect for the freshman class of fall 2012. "If there are Asian-Americans who are qualified and don't get into UC because they're trying to increase diversity, then I think that's unfair," said 16-year-old junior Jessica Peng. "I think that UC is lowering its standards by doing that."

4/21/09 Los Angeles Times: “Judy Chu raises most money in 32nd 
Congressional District seat battle,”
by Jean Merl
    The appointment of Democratic Rep. Hilda Solis as Labor secretary has
prompted 12 candidates to jump into a rare special election to replace her
in the San Gabriel Valley-based 32nd Congressional District.
    Most politics experts, however, see the May 19 primary race as essentially
a two-way contest between two seasoned, liberal Democrats: state Sen. Gil
Cedillo of Los Angeles and state Board of Equalization member and former 
Assemblywoman Judy Chu of Monterey Park .
    Already, Cedillo and Chu have far outdistanced the others -- six Democrats,
three Republicans and a Libertarian -- in fundraising and in backing from 
influential groups and prominent politicians.
    The race, with a Latino and an Asian American as front-runners, is a 
harbinger of future Los Angeles-area politics, with diminishing numbers of 
older white voters and members of growing minority groups competing for 
offices, said Jaime A. Regalado, director of the Edmund G. "Pat" Brown 
Institute of Public Affairs at Cal State L.A.
    "You are going to see Latinos and Asians and Pacific Islanders running 
against each other," said Regalado, who said it is not unusual to have so 
many candidates run for a rare open congressional seat.
    "It's a glamour race that is going to bring people out of the woodwork to 
run," Regalado said.
    And, because congressional offices are not subject to term limits, the 
seat is especially attractive to state elected officials tired of scrambling 
to find another post as they face being termed out of their jobs.
    Both Cedillo and Chu are "seasoned veterans with no place else to go," 
Regalado added, "and that's what makes the stakes so very high."
    Voters will find all 12 candidates on their ballot, regardless of party 
affiliation. Such a large field makes it unlikely that any single candidate can
garner the majority needed to win the race outright. In that case, the top 
finishers in each party will meet in a July 14 runoff.
    In the largely blue-collar district, Latinos account for more than 60% of 
the population and 48% of registered voters, while Asian Americans make
up 19% of the district's population and 13% of its voter roll.
    Democrats hold a 52% to 23% registration edge over Republicans, 
prompting the California Target Book, which tracks political races in the 
state, to label the seat "safe Democratic."
    Even before the filing period closed earlier this month, the race showed
signs of some sharp elbows.
    Judy Chu supporters suspect that Republican Betty Tom Chu, a Monterey 
Park councilwoman and a political opponent of Judy Chu, entered the race 
to confuse voters and harm the chances of her distant relative by marriage. 
Tom Chu said last week she did not have time to discuss her candidacy, 
but earlier told the San Gabriel Valley Tribune that she is running because 
she could not support any of the other candidates and wanted to offer voters
an alternative.
    Apparently motivated by concerns that the large number of Latino 
candidates in the race would split the vote in that group and give Judy Chu
the edge, there also were signs of jockeying.
    Democratic candidate Francisco Alonso, a former mayor of Monterey 
Park , and a campaign official for Democratic actor/filmmaker Stefan 
"Contreras" Lysenko each said Cedillo called them shortly before filing 
closed and urged them to drop out. A Cedillo spokesman said the state 
senator was merely inviting the others to "work together" with him and did
not intend to discourage them from running.
    A campaign consultant for Democrat Emanuel Pleitez, who was a 
member of the Treasury Department presidential transition team, said 
Latino leaders whom he did not name urged him not to make the run this 
time, saying the 26-year-old financial analyst had not yet "paid his dues."
    Making his first run for elected office, Pleitez has gathered a group of 
young staff members and volunteers and reported last week to the Federal 
Election Commission that he had raised nearly $153,000 for the race by 
March 31.
    That amount put him third behind Chu , who reported collecting just over
$770,000, and Cedillo, who raised $568,000.
    A Republican in the race, South El Monte restaurant owner Teresa 
Hernandez, who said she had been campaigning nearly full time for weeks,
reported raising about $71,000. No other candidates had filed with the FEC
by last week's reporting deadline.
    Cedillo, who will be termed out of his Senate seat next year, was a labor
leader before being elected to the state Assembly, where he served two 
terms. He gained perhaps his highest public visibility through his legislative
efforts to allow illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses. His many 
endorsers include Los Angeles Police Chief William J. Bratton, county 
Sheriff Lee Baca, county Supervisor Gloria Molina, eight of the 15 Los 
Angeles City Council members, several members of Congress, several of 
his colleagues in the Legislature and the Los Angeles County Young 
Democrats.
    Chu , who left her Assembly seat to win election to the Board of 
Equalization in 2006, also has strong ties to labor and scored the backing
of the politically powerful Los Angeles County Federation of Labor and the
California Teachers Assn. On Saturday, she won unanimous backing from
the state Democratic Party.

3/18/09 AFP: “Asian-Americans urge Obama to reform immigration,”
    Washington (AFP) — Asian-American members of the US 
Congress on Tuesday urged President Barack Obama to reform 
immigration by year end, saying the current system was tearing families
in their community apart.
    Mike Honda, chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American 
Caucus, wrote Obama a letter saying that immigration reform "must 
remain an early priority in your administration."
    "Immigration raids tear families apart, dreams of undocumented 
students are suspended indefinitely and growing immigration backlogs 
keep close family members separated for years, sometimes decades,"
Honda wrote.
    Honda, a member of Obama's Democratic Party, said some two 
million Asians hoping to be reunited with families were languishing in 
the immigration service's backlog, account for half of such cases.
    He said Asian-Americans -- who account for some five percent of 
the US population -- were also concerned about the Department of 
Homeland Security's past treatment of detainees and lack of due 
process.
    During his campaign, Obama called for a more efficient 
immigration system, saying families were suffering from lengthy 
background checks for applicants, and said illegal residents should
have a conditional path to citizenship.
    Obama also criticized raids on immigration communities as 
ineffective, while pledging to security on US borders.
    But Obama's predecessor George W. Bush twice tried and failed 
to pass sweeping immigration reform that would have given legal 
status and a path to citizenship for the estimated 12 million illegal 
immigrants in the country.
    Some members of Bush's Republican Party argued that 
immigrants were taking jobs at a time that the economy is in crisis.
    Hispanic leaders have also appealed to Obama to act on 
immigration, urging him to call a moratorium on immigration raids
and deportations.


3/16/09 MSNBC; Local News Delaware Valley , PA /NJ PhillyBurbs.com: 
“Asian-Americans fearful after rash of crimes,”
    Levittown - The killing of Robert Chae in his Montgomery Township
home was one of three murders of Asian-American businessmen 
since November and part of a spree of 14 attacks in the Philadelphia  
region.
    The modus operandi was always the same: Criminals staked out 
a business, sometimes calling to ask for closing times, then trailed the
owners home. After parking their cars, the victims were confronted at
gunpoint, forced inside and robbed of jewelry, cash, and other valuables.
    The scenario was repeated at least 14 times in recent months, 
including three times in a single day. The victim was always an Asian 
or Asian-American.
    The home invasion spree, along with three recent murders of Asian-
Americans over the past few months, have left residents and community
leaders here shaken. Police say the victims were targeted by criminals
who believed they would be easy marks because of their ethnicity.
    "The bad guys that we've talked to ... are pretty much assuming that
Asian business people deal in cash and not banks, that Asian business
people are docile and won't fight back, and they keep their money at 
home or in their business," state police Capt. David Young said.
    Asian-American leaders dispute the stereotype, but Young said even
the perception on the part of criminals would make members of the 
community a target. And although Philadelphia crime statistics show a
slight decrease in robberies of people of Asian descent, authorities
believe many crimes may go unreported if victims are reluctant to come
forward, for example fearing trouble over their immigration status.
    "One of our fears is that the Asian community is being victimized way
more than we're being told about," Young said.
    Local and state police, with the aid of federal authorities, have made
arrests in all but one of the home invasion cases. The crime wave came
amid the murders of three Asian-Americans, two of them also by home
invasion.
    On Nov. 10, a man broke into a Delaware County home, tied up a 
man and wife and beat them with a hammer and a chisel. Hoa Pham, 
60, a former lieutenant in the South Vietnamese army, was killed. His 
wife was assaulted but managed to escape.
    On Jan. 9 in Montgomery Township , Robert Chae and his wife were
ambushed in their driveway as they prepared to leave for their beauty 
supply business in downtown Philadelphia . Chae, 58, suffocated after 
he was bound with duct tape. Officials originally thought it might be part
of the spree, but later arrested seven people, including a nephew of the
victim.
    And on Feb. 27, Joseph Chang Ha, 67, a retired pastor, died after 
he was shot in the chest and stomach outside his laundry in North 
Philadelphia .
    "Last year I cannot remember any Korean American murder cases, 
and now it's two in two months," said attorney Young K. Park, president
of the Korean American Association of Greater Philadelphia. "So I'm
afraid, due to economic conditions, maybe that's creating more crimes,
so we are concerned."
    Police and community groups have been holding briefings to warn
Asian-Americans about the crimes and offer advice on staying safe.
Two meetings have been held in the Philadelphia suburbs and more 
are planned.
    "People want to know how to protect themselves; people want to 
know if they own a gun and use it, what will be the consequence ... 
people want to know what they should tell their children to keep them
safe," said Djung Tran of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association
of Pennsylvania, who attended a recent meeting.
    While Tran is wary of reinforcing stereotypes about Asian-Americans
that might make them targets, she said her organization is doing a 
survey to find out whether business owners may be handling their 
money in insecure ways.
    "Is it that there are no banks nearby, the times not convenient, or 
distrust of the financial industry - are they doing things that are making
them more vulnerable?" she said.
    Justin Lee of the Korean American Crime Prevention Committee 
strongly disputes the idea that Asian-Americans are less likely to use
banks. He said the city has seven or eight banks serving the local 
Korean community, which numbers less than 30,000.
    "If Americans have cash, Koreans have cash; if they don't, we don't,"
said Lee, sitting in his North Philadelphia restaurant a few blocks from
the scene of the latest murder.
    Lee, former head of the 700-member Korean American Grocers 
Association of Pennsylvania, talks of trying to foster better relations 
among different groups as a long-term way of stemming crime.
    But stepping to the door of his restaurant to give directions to the 
murder scene, he pulls a key to demonstrate a more immediate 
safety tip - lock the shop if there are only employees and no customers
inside. He also advised association members in a yearly security 
memo to avoid opening or closing their shops by themselves, keep 
the interior bright so it can be seen from outside and get emergency 
alert and closed-circuit television systems.
    At the community meetings, police have also told anyone who 
handles cash at these businesses to follow a few simple rules: Avoid 
parking cars in dark areas, have car keys out when you leave at night,
and have a cell phone at the ready to dial 911. If someone feels they 
are being followed, police say they should file a stalking complaint.
    "People don't have to wait until they are robbed," Young said.
    Police also have pleaded for any other victims to come forward, 
saying they aren't immigration officials.
    "We're here to find out what happened and what we can do to 
prevent this from happening again and get the bad guys off the street,"
Young said.
    In 2007, the Delaware County District Attorney's office announced 
formation of a Korean American Advisory Committee, noting concerns
that "due to language and cultural barriers ... criminal conduct goes 
unreported." Spokesman Michael Mattson said the outreach effort 
had been expanded to other Asian communities in light of the recent
crimes.
    According to a census survey, about 78,400 people of Asian 
descent live in Philadelphia , a city of about 1.4 million. Police statistics
indicate that 635 of the city's reported 9,907 robbery victims in 2008
were of Asian descent, compared to 686 out of 10,535 in 2007.
    Six people have been held for trial in Chae's murder, and 
authorities in Delaware County are seeking the death penalty in 
Pham's death. And four of the eight people arrested in the home 
invasion spree, charged earlier in state court, have been charged in
federal court with interfering with interstate commerce, attempted 
carjacking and other counts.
    Lt. John Walker of the Southwest Detectives division of
Philadelphia police said federal authorities agreed to prosecute the 
home invasion cases to send a strong message.
    "People when they get home, that's their sanctity, that's their 
safety," he said. "These kids have shattered that feeling of safety in 
this community and it's not going to be tolerated."

3/14/09 The Chronicle of Higher Education: "Asian-American 
Lawmakers Pressure U. of California Over New Admissions
Policy"     
by Peter Schmidt
    Two panels of the California Legislature that deal with Asian-
American issues plan to jointly hold a hearing next week to 
scrutinize a new University of California undergraduate admissions
policy that could lower Asian-American enrollments.
    The State Senate's select committee on Asian and Pacific 
Islander affairs and the state's 11-member Joint Asian Pacific 
Islander Legislative Caucus plan to hear testimony from Asian-
American activists, a member of the university Academic Senate
who helped develop the policy, and a legislative analyst who 
examined the policy's impact, Andrew T. Medina, a consultant on
the caucus's staff, said on Monday.
    The university system's own analysis of the likely impact of the 
new admissions policy, adopted last month, had projected that it 
would cause a decline in the share of admitted students who are 
Asian American or Pacific Islander, with white students accounting
for most of those who take their place.
    University officials had argued, however, that such projections of
the policy's impact on various racial and ethnic groups should not
be given much weight because the system's estimates were based
on outdated student data, from 2007, and did not take into account
expected changes in student behavior or the uncertainty of the
admissions process.
    Speaking last month at the Education Writers Association 
conference in San Francisco , Mark G. Yudof, the university's 
president, called the new admissions policy "fair" and said, "I think
Asian Americans will do well. That is my prediction."
    Such statements have done little to reassure Asian American
members of the State Legislature, who had responded to the
concerns of many of their constituents by urging the system's Board
of Regents to postpone its February 4 vote on the policy change to
allow more time to study its likely impact on minority groups. In a
letter sent to the board the day before its vote, the leaders of the
Joint Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus accused the system
of doing nothing to solicit feedback on the policy from the caucus or
the ethnic groups that it represents, and said the policy "has not
received the proper vetting it deserves"
    In a recent interview, State Assemblyman Ted Lieu, a Democrat 
who serves as co-chairman of the caucus, said the Asian-American
community "feels it was blindsided by this decision." He said he
objects to the policy change partly because the university's analysis
of its impact had lumped all Asian-American populations together
into what he called "one monolithic block," thus failing to tease out
how specific ethnic groups would be affected. He also complained
that the policy change will do little to diversify the university's
enrollments or to tackle the inequities in elementary and secondary
education that have left the university's campuses with enrollments
that do not reflect the racial and ethnic composition of the state.
    Mr. Lieu acknowledged that, under his state's Constitution, the
Legislature has little direct say over the University of California 's 
policies, which are set by the Board of Regents. But, he said, 
"Lawmakers do determine how much financial support the university
receives in the state budget, and now "you have 11 upset legislators 
looking at this."

3/10/09 Reuters: “Madoff judge known as soft-spoken yet tough,”
by Martha Graybow
    New York (Reuters) - The Bernard Madoff scandal is one of the 
biggest cases ever to land in Judge Denny Chin's courtroom. But the
15-year veteran of the federal bench is no stranger to high-profile legal
disputes.
    Chin, born in Hong Kong and the first Asian-American federal judge 
outside of California and Hawaii , was assigned to oversee the Madoff 
criminal case last week after the accused swindler signaled he planned 
to plead guilty.
    Madoff appeared for the first time before the judge Tuesday on a 
potential conflict involving his lawyer and is expected to plead guilty on 
Thursday before a crowd of his angry former investors -- three months 
after he was charged with running a $50 billion investment ponzi scheme.
    Madoff is expected to admit his guilt to 11 criminal charges that could
put him in jail for the rest of his life.
    Judge Chin is known in the legal community as even-tempered, fair, 
witty and unafraid to make tough decisions. He was just 39 when tapped
by former President Bill Clinton in 1994 for a judgeship in Manhattan  
federal court -- one of the busiest U.S. courthouses with cases ranging 
from terrorism trials to celebrity disputes to white-collar crime.
    His cases have included a controversial 2006 ruling that nixed a state
law toughening New York 's ability to track sexual offenders.
    Two years ago, he took the rare step of throwing out a jury's conviction
of a former New York Stock Exchange floor trader accused of improperly 
trading ahead of customer orders, saying that prosecutors did not prove 
their fraud accusations.
    "His soft-spoken, calm demeanor shouldn't be underestimated," said 
Randy Mastro, a partner at law firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP in 
New York and former deputy mayor under Rudy Giuliani. Mastro worked 
with Chin at the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan in the 1980s.
    "He will do the right thing. He is not a person who shies away from 
deciding a tough case or controversy."
    Last month, Judge Chin sentenced the man who led a prostitution ring
whose clients included former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer to 30 months 
in prison. Other cases that he presided over include a 2002 lawsuit 
against Penthouse magazine for running pictures of a topless sunbather 
misidentified as tennis star Anna Kournikova. The case later settled out 
of court.
    FRENZY OVER MADOFF
    Madoff, a veteran money manager, has become one of the most 
reviled people in the United States for allegedly stealing from clients 
including the elderly and charities.
    His prior court appearances have attracted throngs of reporters and 
photographers. The former Nasdaq chairman, under house arrest in his
penthouse apartment and around-the-clock security, has arrived at court
in a bulletproof vest.
    Madoff will get a fair hearing in Chin's courtroom, the judge's former
colleagues say.
    "I think he will be measured, and I think he'll listen and I think he'll do 
what he thinks is right," said Anne Vladeck, a partner at law firm Vladeck
Waldman Elias & Engelhard, where Chin worked before taking the bench.
    He "is fair and equal to whomever is before him, whether it is somebody
who is blue collar, an immigrant or a CEO," Vladeck said.
    The Madoff case is the latest big financial fraud case in a courthouse 
where well-known defendants like Martha Stewart, Bernard Ebbers and 
Michael Milken were prosecuted.
    If Madoff pleads guilty, there would be no trial. Instead, the judge would
decide on punishment and other matters such as potential victims' 
restitution in the coming weeks or months.
    While federal judges have leeway over sentencing, anything other than
life in prison for the 70-year-old Madoff would be surprising given the size
of the alleged fraud, experts say.
    "Regardless of what judge he did draw, his fate is pretty much sealed," 
said Evan Stewart, a partner at law firm Zuckerman Spaeder LLP in
New York .
    FROM CHINA TO NEW YORK
    Chin came to the United States with his parents at the age of two. 
His mother worked as a seamstress in the garment factories of New York 's
Chinatown , a stone's throw from the federal courthouse where he now
works, while his father was a cook in Chinese restaurants.
    Chin was a star student at the city's prestigious Stuyvesant High School
before attending Princeton University and then Fordham Law School .
    Chin clerked for a federal judge and then spent two years at law firm 
Davis Polk & Wardwell. In 1982, he became a lawyer in the civil division 
of the U.S. Attorney's Office in Manhattan , before returning to private 
practice in 1986.
    He is married to a lawyer and has been active in the Asian-American 
Bar Association of New York and organizations including Hartley House,
a community group in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan where
he grew up.
    Mastro, Chin's former colleague at the U.S. Attorney's Office, said the 
judge is one of the most honorable people he has worked with and that 
he gives everyone a fair hearing.
    A few years ago, Mastro argued a case before the judge. "I got a warm
reception and a full opportunity to make my case, and then he denied my
motion," Mastro said. "No matter how long you've known him, you're going
to get a fair shake in his courtroom and he's going to decide the case on 
the merits."


3/5/09 The Dartmouth: “E-mail on Kim stirs controversy,”
by Emily Goodell, Emma Fidel and Nathan Swire
    An e-mail that referred to College President-elect Jim Yong Kim as a 
“Chinaman” and warned the campus to prepare for “Asianification” has 
sparked controversy on campus, less than three days after the announcement 
that the Harvard professor and global health leader would be inaugurated as 
the College’s 17th president. The e-mail, which was sent to approximately 
1,000 students and alumni, was the Tuesday morning edition of the Generic 
Good Morning Message, a student written and edited tongue-in-cheek 
compilation of each day’s news.
    College President James Wright released a statement on the matter late 
Wednesday night.
    “The announcement of Dr. Jim Yong Kim’s election as the 17th president 
has been received enthusiastically across the campus and by all members 
of the Dartmouth community,” Wright said. “It is unfortunate that an offensive 
attempt at humor has distracted us and has caused hurt and embarrassment. 
This does not represent the mood that we share and it will not deter us from 
our plans warmly to welcome Dr. Kim and his family to this open and 
gracious community.”
    The Tuesday morning e-mail led with a feature written by anonymous 
GGMM intern “Lozar Theofilactidis.”
    “On July 1, yet another hard-working American’s job will be taken by an 
immigrant willing to work in substandard conditions at near-subsistent wage,
saving half his money and sending the rest home to his village in the form of 
traveler’s checks,” the message states, in part. “Unless ‘Jim Yong Kim’ 
means ‘I love Freedom’ in Chinese, I don’t want anything to do with him.
Dartmouth is America , not Panda Garden Rice Village Restaurant.”
    The GGMM, which began in 1996, is currently edited by a group of six
Dartmouth upperclassmen. Underclassmen interns contribute to the 
publication.
    The author of the original e-mail apologized for “inappropriate” and 
“insensitive” comments in an e-mail to the GGMM listserv on Tuesday, 
saying that the comments were intended to be satirical. The GGMM staff 
also offered a follow-up apology, saying they regretted their lack of 
oversight.
    “We cannot stress enough the intention behind this message was not 
malicious,” Courtney Davis ‘09, a member of the GGMM staff, said in an 
e-mail to the listserv. “The writer is full of regret; did not intend to offend 
anyone, and has committed to meeting with others, from diverse 
backgrounds, to learn as many lessons as possible from this experience.
Although the GGMM is a listserv administered by six students and is not 
affiliated with the College in any way, we recognize the impact that this 
unfortunate incident has had on the community.”
    Many students were upset by the e-mail both because of its perceived
offensiveness and because they believed it reflected badly on the College, 
Aimee Moon ‘09, an intern with the Pan-Asian Council, said. Moon is a 
member of The Dartmouth staff.
    “We went from a really excited, hopeful mood on Monday to having all the
excitement get deflated by something that doesn’t reflect the campus’ 
reception of the President-elect,” Moon said.
    Students and administrators met on Tuesday and Wednesday nights 
to discuss the situation and the appropriate response.
    College President James Wright spoke with students on Tuesday and 
is open to future meetings to discuss the situation, according to Sylvia 
Spears, director of the Office of Pluralism and Leadership and acting 
senior associate dean of the College.
    The nature of the speech in the e-mail does not warrant College 
disciplinary action, Spears said in an open campus meeting on 
Wednesday evening, noting that Dartmouth does not have a speech code.
    Ray Leung ‘10, who attended the meeting, expressed frustration that 
some people on campus saw the e-mail as a joke.
    “This is a very severe issue,” he said. “This should not be taken lightly 
as ‘borderline inappropriate.’”
    Spears said that the e-mail has provided a “teachable moment” for 
students.
    “I have been very impressed with students’ ability to engage in very 
difficult conversations with poise and respect for each other,” she said.
    She added that Kim has responded to the e-mail with concern about 
its potential effect on campus.
    “He had a very reasoned response and has been in conversation with 
President [James] Wright,” she said.
    Students interviewed by The Dartmouth had overwhelmingly positive 
comments about Kim’s appointment. College Democrats president David
Imamura ‘10 said he had been warned before he matriculated that the 
College was less diverse and more conservative than others, but that 
Kim’s selection shows that Dartmouth values diversity.
    “Choosing Dr. Kim really sends a message that Dartmouth leads the
way in diversity and in making sure that everyone has the opportunity 
to make what they can of themselves,” he said.
    Students and faculty have praised Kim’s appointment as Dartmouth’s
next president. Many said they hoped Kim would bring a fresh perspective
to the College.
    Student Body President Molly Bode ‘09, who served as the student 
representative on the presidential search committee, said she could not 
be more pleased with the choice.
    “He is as impressive, or even more impressive, in person as he is on
paper,” Bode said. “I have never met someone who is so inspirational.”
    Kim’s appointment will “put Dartmouth on the map” in the global health
world, biology department chair Tom Jack said.
    “There’s been a great surge of interest in global health, and Dartmouth
hasn’t had a lot to offer in that area,” he said. “With the hiring [of Kim], that
changes pretty dramatically. Students with an interest in global health will
want to come to Dartmouth now — undergraduate students, graduate 
students and faculty. He’ll be a magnet to attract faculty in that area.”
    Many students said they believed Kim’s selection could help change 
the typical image of an Ivy League leader.
    “I have never been more proud to be a Dartmouth student,” Alex 
Maceda ‘11 said. “It feels great to be an Asian-American at Dartmouth.”
    Kim’s race should not be the sole focus of the community’s excitement
and expectations, Nora Yasumura, acting assistant director of the Office 
of Pluralism and Leadership and adviser to Asian and Asian-American 
students, said.
    “It really isn’t because he is a person of color that he’ll be a great 
president,” she said. “Most important are the skills and insight he will 
bring to campus.”
    Many faculty members praised Kim’s experience as a professor and 
researcher.
    “I think [Kim’s appointment] shows understanding and appreciation of
the roles the graduate schools and especially the medical school play in
the life of Dartmouth,” Dartmouth Medical School senior associate dean
for academic affairs William Hickey said.
    The Board of Trustees took a “brave step” in selecting Kim because 
he is a doctor and a leader in a specific field, Hickey said.
    “I don’t see a downside to it,” he said. “I understand that he is a 
thoughtful leader. He has a lot of presence not only in the medical field, 
but in the academic world.”
    Dartmouth Asian Organization President David Louie ‘09 said he was
somewhat concerned about Kim’s relative lack of experience with 
undergraduate institutions, but he said Kim’s speech on Monday 
reassured him that the president-elect would remain dedicated to 
Dartmouth’s traditional emphasis on undergraduate education.
    “He’s got the unique ability to take both the undergraduate and 
graduate [schools] to a higher level and really get all the parts of 
Dartmouth to coalesce and work together,” Thayer School of Engineering
Dean Joseph Helble, a presidential search committee member, said.
    Dean of Faculty Carol Folt also expressed enthusiasm about Kim’s
relationship with the faculty.
    “He has an extremely strong faculty background,” Folt said. “I think 
they’re going to look at him as a person that really understands the 
aspirations they have for global involvement. He is very actively involved 
in some of the biggest issues of our times.”
    Kim has a receptive, relatable personality that makes him a great 
choice for president, several faculty members said.
    “I think he’s lots of things we were looking for,” economics professor
Jonathan Skinner, a search committee member, said. “[He has] 
leadership skills, charisma, a sense of moral purpose, excitement. 
We couldn’t be happier.”
    Some members of the Class of 2009 said they were aware of Kim’s
background even before the announcement of his appointment because
they were required to read “ Mountains Beyond Mountains ” by Tracy 
Kidder the summer before matriculation. The book is about Paul Farmer,
now a professor at Harvard Medical School , and his work at Partners in
Health, a global health organization he co-founded with Kim.
    “I was inspired by Partners in Health after reading Mountains Beyond
Mountains ,” Sam Kennedy ‘09, an intern in Wright’s office, said. 
“Although I am not interested in the medical field, it actually inspired me 
to possibly go into education in developing countries.”
    Others see Kim’s selection as a positive opportunity to introduce a 
fresh perspective to the College.
    “He can change some of the atmosphere on campus because he’s 
not really tied to this scene,” Uthman Olagoke ‘11 said. “New ideas, 
new outlook.”
    Jack said that Kim’s background distinguishes him from previous 
Dartmouth presidents and other leaders in the Ivy League, many of 
whom first after spent their careers serving as deans, provosts and 
presidents of other institutions.
    “President Kim doesn’t have the typical CV that you see,” Jack said. 
“He has not been a dean or provost, so he brings different set of 
experiences.”
    Staff writers Josh Roselman and Greg Berger contributed to the 
reporting of this article.

3/4/09 Asian Week: “Another Asian American to Join Obama’s Cabinet,” 
by Lian Qiu
    Former Washington Gov. Gary Locke has been named as President 
Barack Obama’s third nominee for commerce secretary. Locke if 
confirmed by the U.S. Senate, will be the third Asian American to join the
cabinet, after Eric Shinseki, Secretary of Veteran Affairs and Stephen 
Chu, Secretary of Energy.
    “Gary will be a trusted voice in my Cabinet, a tireless advocate for our
economic competitiveness and an influential ambassador for American
industry who will help us do everything we can, especially now, to promote
our industry around the world,” said Obama.
    Locke, a third-generation Chinese American, became the country’s first
Chinese-American governor, elected to lead Washington in 1996 and 
re-elected in 2000.
    As the popular governor of the nation’s most trade-dependable state,
Locke broke down trade barriers around the world to advance American 
products. To open doors for the state businesses, he led 10 productive 
missions to Asia, Mexico and Europe, significantly expanding the sales of
Washington products and services. He successfully fostered economic 
relations between China and Washington State . His visits are credited 
with introducing Washington companies to China and helping more than 
double the state’s exports to China to over $5 billion per year. He also 
opened a Washington State trade office in Germany to advance trade 
relations with European countries.
    “Working with the professionals at the Department of Commerce, I’m
committed to making the department an active and integral partner in 
advancing [Obama’s] economic policies and restoring the American 
dream to all Americans,” Locke said.
    “Our nation’s economic success is tied directly to America continuing
to lead in technology and innovation and in exporting those products, 
services and ideas to markets around the globe,” Locke added. “The 
Department of Commerce can and will help create jobs and the economic
vitality our country needs.
    Locke is widely praised in Washington State for winning a nationwide
competition to win production of Boeing’s newest jetliner, the 787, which
created thousands of jobs in the state.
    For the past four years, Locke has been a successful business advocate
and adviser, helping U.S. companies break into international markets, 
particularly in Asia , and expand their international business. A partner in 
the Seattle office of the international law firm of Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, 
Locke co-chairs the firm’s China practice and is active in its governmental 
relations practice.
    Hard work, intense focus and devotion to details, carried Locke, the 
son of Chinese immigrant restaurant owners to his nomination as secretary
of commerce.
    For the first five years in the U.S. , his family lived in the Yesler Terrace 
low-income project on a hilltop overlooking the Chinatown-International 
District and downtown Seattle . His parents owned a restaurant in Pike 
Place Market and later a small grocery store.
    Supported by scholarships and loans, Locke got his political science 
degree at Yale University , weighed careers in forestry, teaching and urban
planning, earned a law degree from Boston University , returned home and 
worked for five years as a King County deputy prosecutor.
    “ Gary knows the American dream. He’s lived it. And that’s why he 
shares my commitment to do whatever it takes to keep it alive in our time,”
said Obama.
    Increasingly active in politics, Locke eventually became a staff attorney 
for the state Senate in 1981 and the next year won election to the House 
of Representatives, ousting Peggie Maxie, a veteran incumbent and 
fellow Democrat. By his third term he was chairman of the budget-writing
House Appropriations Committee, funneling money into education and 
other pet programs. He left that post after being elected King County  
executive in 1993.
    “Communities from coast to coast are uplifted by the potential 
appointment of Governor Locke, especially in light of his track record 
in government and leadership,” said New York City Council Member 
John C. Liu. “We welcome his return to public service as someone who
has been a trailblazer, role model and respected leader.”
    

3/3/09 The Dartmouth: “Kim took ‘unusual path’ to College,”
by Fan Zhang
    Dartmouth ’s President-elect Jim Yong Kim has a strong background in 
global health care and social medicine.
    As an immigrant from South Korea and a global health advocate, Jim 
Yong Kim has taken an “unusual path” to the Dartmouth presidency, 
Dartmouth Board of Trustees Chairman Ed Haldeman ‘70 said in an 
interview with The Dartmouth.
    GROWING UP
    At the announcement of his presidency on Monday, Kim began his 
address by thanking his parents, citing them as a major influence in his life. 
His father, Nhak Hee Kim, taught at a dentistry school in Seoul and his 
mother, Oaksook Kim, was a professor at the largest women’s university 
in Korea , Kim said in an interview with The Dartmouth. Although his older 
brother was born in the United States , Kim and his younger sister, Heidi, 
were born in South Korea .
    “We were doing okay, but we came here because they felt the political 
situation in Korea was unstable, and they felt that the greatest opportunity
for us as kids to reach our potential [was in the United States ],” Kim said
in the interview.
    The family moved to Dallas , Texas , when Kim was five years old and 
relocated to Muscatine , Iowa , where Kim grew up, after Kim finished first
grade. His father taught at the University of Iowa , where his mother received
her doctorate in philosophy.
    Kim said his family was among only two Asian American families living 
in Muscatine and that there were few other Asian families in the state.
    Despite his “very American upbringing,” during which he completely 
forgot the Korean language, Kim said he was often aware of his cultural 
differences. Peers would approach Kim in the mall and make fake karate
moves, and on the basketball court, other athletes would spit on him, 
Kim told Brown University Alumni Magazine in 2006.
    EDUCATION
    As a student at Muscatine High School , Kim was involved in several 
extracurricular activities and did well academically. Head of Student 
Services Keith Pogemiller, who came to the school a few months after 
Kim graduated, said he knew of Kim because teachers continued to 
praise him even by the time Pogemiller arrived. Pogemiller said the 
teachers described Kim as intelligent and outgoing, noting that Kim was 
one of the high school’s valedictorians in 1978 and played basketball 
and football.
    Kim began his college career at the University of Iowa after receiving
an engineering scholarship. The summer before he started college, Kim
attended a science program, where peers encouraged him to apply to 
an Ivy League institution, he told Brown Alumni Magazine. Kim transferred
to Brown University his sophomore year.
    Only a few students from Muscatine High School choose to attend 
eastern colleges, Pogemiller said. Currently, approximately one-third of
each class from the high school attends a junior or community college, 
and another 35 to 40 percent attend a four-year university, he said.
    Kim, who initially wanted to study political science and philosophy, 
informed his father about his intended concentrations when he returned 
to Iowa after his sophomore year at Brown. Kim said his father told him 
during the car ride home from the airport that as a Korean American, 
Kim could do whatever he wanted, but he needed to “have a skill no 
one can away.” Kim subsequently declared a major in human biology.
    Kim enrolled in Harvard Medical School immediately following his 
graduation from Brown in 1962, but took time off after his father 
passed away. During medical school, Kim completed a pre-doctoral 
fellowship in clinically relevant medical anthropology and graduated in
1991. Kim also pursued a Ph.D in anthropology, which he earned in 1993.
    RESEARCH AND TEACHING
    In his second year of medical school, Kim met Paul Farmer, who later
would also become a member of the Harvard Medical School faculty. 
The two completed their medical residencies and fellowships at Brigham
and Women’s Hospital together. They also co-founded Partners in Health,
which provides medical treatment to poor communities across the globe.
    This project became the subject of the book “ Mountains Beyond  
Mountains” by Tracy Kidder. The book was assigned reading prior to 
matriculation for the Class of 2009.
    In fall 2008, Kim taught a global health course with Farmer at Harvard
for undergraduate students. The class was designed “to create the great 
leaders of tomorrow for global health,” Kim said, describing the course 
as “the greatest educational experience of his life.”
    “As Jim’s closest friend and colleague for 25 years, I can only say that
I think Dartmouth is lucky to have him,” Farmer said in a College press 
release.
    Kim’s appointment was an exciting and bold move, Gary Gottlieb, 
a psychiatry professor and president of Brigham and Women’s Hospital,
said in an interview. Gottlieb, whose daughter is a member of Dartmouth ’s
Class of 2010, praised Kim and Partners in Health for providing the 
hospital’s residents and students with opportunities to work in places like
Russia and Haiti .
    FAMILY
    Kim’s wife, Younsook Lim, is a pediatrician at Children’s Hospital 
Boston and previously worked for many years at Brookside Community
Health Center , also in Boston . Although she has yet to decide if she will 
practice in Hanover , the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical 
Practice fits her interests well, Kim said.
    The couple has two children — Thomas, who is eight, and another son
born on Feb. 27. Kim said, jokingly, that he hopes his children will not 
disturb his neighbors on Webster Avenue .
    “One of the things we are worried about is that our children don’t get
spoiled by all the attention they are going to receive from students,” Kim
said.
    Kim said he looks forward to living on Webster Avenue , since his duties
as president include interacting with students. Kim said College President
James Wright told him that the fraternities and sororities are good 
neighbors, and Kim said he hopes to be welcome amongst students at 
the dining halls, athletic practices and other social events, he said.
    Kim also asked community members to be patient with him as he 
becomes more familiar with Dartmouth culture.
    “I don’t know the Salty Dog Rag yet, so let that be a symbol,” he said. 
“I will have to be taught the Salty Dog Rag, and I will have to be taught a lot
about the culture of Dartmouth . But heck, I’m an anthropologist. That’s 
what I do for a living.”

3/3/09 Inside Higher Ed: “ Dartmouth 's Historic Choice,”
by Scott Jaschik
    On Saturday at a meeting sponsored by the Education Writers 
Association, L. Ling-chi Wang told a group of journalists that Asian 
Americans were "marginalized" and "invisible" at the top rungs of 
American higher education, despite considerable success as students 
and professors at many institutions. Wang, who teaches at the University
of California at Berkeley and was one of the founders of Asian Americans
in Higher Education, recalled a joint conference planned by Asian 
American studies and black studies scholars at Berkeley . The latter group
planned to invite all the black presidents of colleges in the country, and so
proposed to Wang that he provide a list of all the Asian American 
presidents so they could be invited as well.
    "What list? I can count them on my hand," he recalled saying at the time.
    The list just got longer. Dartmouth College on Monday named Jim Yong 
Kim as its next president. Kim is chair of the Department of Global Health 
and Social Medicine at Harvard University , previously led the World Health
Organization's HIV/AIDS program, holds degrees in anthropology and 
medicine, and has won numerous honors, including the MacArthur 
"genius" fellowship. 
    Kim, 49, has mixed a career in academe with one in public health and 
world development, winning praise in both. And in a sign of multi-tasking 
abilities, he accepted the Dartmouth presidency three days after he and 
his wife (a physician) welcomed their second son into the world.
    In terms of higher education history, however, Kim may attract much 
attention because he was born in Korea and came to the United States at
the age of 5. Kim will become the first Asian American to lead an Ivy 
League institution. While Wang could no longer count Asian American 
presidents on one hand, their numbers remain small. According to data 
from the American Council on Education, Asian Americans make up 
0.9 percent of college presidents (by comparison, 5.9 percent of 
presidents are black and 4.6 percent are Latino). 
    And only 1.9 percent of provosts are Asian American, along with 2.8 
percent of deans -- even as many elite colleges have large percentages 
of Asian American students. (At Dartmouth , 14 percent of the most recent
class to enroll is Asian American.)
    Among the elite colleges and universities, Wang noted that only 
Berkeley has been led by an Asian American. Chang-Lin Tien, who died
in 2002, was chancellor from 1990-97. Wang said in an interview Monday
that he was "elated" about Kim's appointment, and said that it was key for 
administrators and boards to see an institution like Dartmouth make such
a choice. "This is an incredibly important appointment," Wang said.
    In an interview Monday morning, while en route to Hanover, N.H., to be
introduced to students and faculty members, Kim said he realized that 
because relatively few Asian Americans have held senior positions in 
higher education, the news of his appointment would be "the first of many"
such announcements. He noted that his background -- running major 
programs, but not serving as a dean or provost -- was unconventional 
for a college president, and he suggested that college search committees
may want to cast wider nets to include people with such backgrounds as 
a way to attract more diverse pools.
    James P. Ferrare, a senior consultant with Academic Search, which 
advises college boards on presidential hiring (and which played no role 
in the Dartmouth search), said he thought the appointment was 
"significant" and might prompt search committees to think differently. 
Too many boards, he said, "don't have the familiarity" with the talent 
available for senior positions. 
    "I think there are many really high quality Asian American administrators
who have not gotten to the presidency as fast as some would have liked," 
he said. Ferrare said he thought it was important for firms such as his 
to reach out to identify more candidates, and he encouraged those who
want to be provosts and presidents to contact the consultants. Ferrare
also agreed with Kim that the key may be broadening the search 
criteria "outside of the traditional step of being a dean or provost first."
    Rosalind S. Chou, a doctoral student at Texas A&M University and 
co-author of The Myth of the Model Minority: Asian Americans Facing 
Racism, also spoke Saturday to education journalists about the lack 
of power of Asian Americans in academe. She said Monday that the 
appointment was "great" and that it was important to see such a move. 
    At the same time, she cautioned that just as the election of President
Obama did not erase issues of racism in American society, neither 
does the elevation of more Asian American leaders. She said the most
powerful impact of Kim's appointment may be in showing other Asian 
Americans "what they can do," now that there has been "another crack
in a glass ceiling."
    Leslie Wong, president of Northern Michigan University , is one of the
few Asian American university presidents today. He said on Monday 
that Asian Americans advance at high rates to jobs as professors, 
department chairs and lower level administrative positions, but that 
then they hit the "bamboo ceiling," as many call it. "We have no idea 
what is going on but the data are unmistakable. It is most benign but 
if the label was 'African American' or 'female' I'm sure the discussion 
would be louder," Wong said. He called the news about Kim "fantastic."
    The Job at Hand
    While experts on diversity in higher education were noting the 
significance of Kim's selection for Asian Americans, Dartmouth 's new
president will take over at a time of economic difficulty even for wealthy
institutions like the one he now leads. In an interview, he said that his
approach to the current frugality would be "strategic," and he said it was
important for the college to protect key values and programs -- such as
undergraduate teaching. He said that he rejected the idea of 
economizing through across-the-board cuts, which he characterized as
"demoralizing" and having the potential to endanger key programs.
    Kim also noted the "incredible loyalty" of Dartmouth alumni and said
that he believed that because of their philanthropy, the college "will be 
able to move forward more quickly" than will other colleges. "You see
Dartmouth alumni who are just crazy about this school," he said.
    In recent years, even as Dartmouth's leaders have enjoyed strong 
faculty support, some of those alumni have been deeply critical of the
college, saying that its governance changes have deprived them of 
their traditional say in selecting board members, and accusing the 
college's leaders of neglecting athletics, being hostile to the Greek 
system, and -- in a comment frequent among critics -- trying to turn 
Dartmouth into Harvard. As a Harvard-educated Harvard professor, 
Kim might reinforce the concerns of these alumni. But he seemed 
determined to stress the ways in which he embraces Dartmouth 's 
traditions.
    The press release about his appointment notes that he was a 
quarterback on his high school football team. In the interview, he said
that "far from trying to turn Dartmouth into any other kind of institution,
my job will be to preserve Dartmouth's strengths," which he said 
include undergraduate education with courses taught by tenure track
faculty members -- and also robust fraternity and sorority systems, 
and athletic programs. 
    In his acceptance speech in Hanover, Kim also linked his interest
in becoming president to the legacy of John Sloan Dickey, the 
college's president from 1945-70, who also had a non-academic 
career before leading Dartmouth, and who encouraged students 
to think about their responsibilities in the world at large.
    Kim said that he had lengthy conversations with some of the 
alumni leaders who have been critical of the college's direction, 
and that he was confident that they were ready to work with him. 
"I have never been one who has participated in the so-called 
culture wars," he said. "I'm involved in projects that tackle serious
problems."


3/2/09 Dartmouth College Office of Public Affairs press release: 
"Dr. Jim Yong Kim appointed 17th President of Dartmouth College: 
Dedicated educator and humanitarian has provided visionary leadership in
academia, public policy, and global health.  Continues long tradition of 
Dartmouth Presidents who have had significant impact on the world stage
and in the classroom,"
    Jim Yong Kim, M.D., Ph.D., Chair of the Department of Global Health 
and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School , has been elected the 
17th President of Dartmouth by the College’s Board of Trustees. Ed 
Haldeman, Chair of Dartmouth’s Board of Trustees, announced the 
appointment today at a meeting of students, faculty and staff. 
    Dr. Kim, 49, will take office on July 1, 2009 and succeeds James 
Wright, who previously announced that he is stepping down in June after
11 years as President of the College.
    “Jim Yong Kim embodies the ideals of learning, innovation, and service
that lie at the heart of Dartmouth ’s mission,” Haldeman said. “As a
passionate educator and physician, he has had a profound impact on
students, faculty, colleagues and fellow health professionals. And as a 
leader in the field of global health, Jim has helped to transform efforts to
bring health care to the world’s poor. Jim follows in the long tradition of
Dartmouth presidents who have made a significant mark both in higher 
education and on the world stage, and we are confident he is the ideal
person to lead the College in today’s rapidly changing environment.”
    Dr. Kim trained as both a physician and anthropologist, receiving his 
M.D. and Ph.D. from Harvard University . He graduated magna cum laude
with a B.A. from Brown University in 1982. A former senior official at the
World Health Organization and co-founder of Partners In Health, he is 
internationally acknowledged for his leadership in the fight against 
HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and other diseases. In 2004, in recognition of his
many accomplishments, he was elected to the prestigious Institute of 
Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences.
    Dr. Kim said, “I am honored and humbled to accept this role, and look
forward to building on the many achievements of Jim Wright and his 
predecessors that have made Dartmouth the vibrant, world-class institution
it is today. Dartmouth is a unique and special place with a powerful sense
of community. The educational opportunities it offers, both at the 
undergraduate and graduate levels, are exceptional, and the loyalty and 
passion of its alumni, faculty, staff and students are unrivaled. I could not 
be more excited about this opportunity to help build on Dartmouth ’s great 
traditions as well as its singular role in higher education.” 
    President-elect Kim is only the 17th president in the Wheelock 
Succession of leaders since Eleazar Wheelock founded Dartmouth  
College in 1769. Born in Seoul , Korea , he is also the first Asian American
to be appointed president of an Ivy League school. Dr. Kim is married to 
Dr. Younsook Lim, a pediatrician at Children’s Hospital Boston. The 
couple have two sons, one eight years old, the other born February 27.
    In addition to his role as Chair of the Department of Global Health and 
Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Dr. Kim is chief of the 
Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in 
Boston, a major Harvard teaching hospital, and Director of the François-
Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights at the Harvard 
School of Public Health. He continues to teach undergraduate classes 
alongside his administrative responsibilities, development activities, 
writings and other academic and clinical contributions. His classes 
today are enormously popular and constantly oversubscribed and he 
plans to continue to teach undergraduates at Dartmouth .
    “Throughout his life, Jim has been devoted to teaching and inspiring
young people both inside and outside the classroom,” said Al Mulley, 
Chair of the Presidential Search Committee and a Dartmouth Trustee. 
“Like former Dartmouth President John Sloan Dickey, Jim believes that
education is not just about gaining knowledge, but also forming leaders
who will rise to meet the great challenges of our time. And like Dickey –
who told students that ‘the world's troubles are your troubles’ – Jim 
aims to redouble Dartmouth ’s efforts to provide leadership on the 
global stage.”
    President Wright described Dr. Kim’s election as “a proud and 
defining moment in Dartmouth ’s history.  Jim is a brilliant educator, 
physician and anthropologist who will serve as a true inspiration for our
community. Dartmouth is fortunate indeed to have attracted an innovator
of his caliber with both the enthusiasm and the global perspective it will
take to lead the College into a new era of distinction and achievement.”
    Dr. Kim has 20 years of experience in improving health in developing
countries. He is a founding trustee and the former executive director of
Partners In Health, a not-for-profit organization that supports a range of
health programs in poor communities worldwide. In 2004, he was 
appointed director of the HIV/AIDS department at the World Health 
Organization, where he launched an initiative to dramatically expand 
access to HIV/AIDS treatment in low- and middle-income countries. 
By 2007, the initiative had helped to provide lifesaving antiretroviral 
therapy to approximately three million people worldwide and had 
accelerated global efforts to fight other diseases such as tuberculosis 
and malaria.
    “Our goal at the World Health Organization was to raise aspirations 
about what can be achieved in the treatment of HIV/AIDS, and I see the
same vision and sense of purpose at Dartmouth today,” Dr. Kim said. 
“The College and its faculty truly excel at developing the sort of 
individuals who will be the leaders of tomorrow – and in driving forward
the kind of collaborative, interdisciplinary work that is critical to success
in the 21st century. With the help and support of the entire Dartmouth
community, I know we will be able to further strengthen the unique
Dartmouth experience and continue arming young people with the 
skills they need to go out and change the world.”
    Dr. Kim immigrated with his family to the United States at the age of
five and grew up in Muscatine , Iowa . He attended Muscatine High 
School , where he was valedictorian and president of his class and 
played quarterback for the high school football team. Dr. Kim received
a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship in 2003 and was named one of 
America’s 25 ”Best Leaders” by U.S. News & World Report in 2005. 
In 2006, he was selected as one of TIME magazine’s “100 Most 
Influential People in the World.” In a profile for TIME, Tracy Kidder, who
described Kim’s work in the book Mountains Beyond Mountains , wrote,
“One of his students told me that Kim was his most inspirational 
instructor; he made you believe you could change the world. I have no 
idea what he’ll do next. But looking forward to it gives me hope.”
    Dr. Kim’s enthusiastic selection by the Search Committee, and his 
election by the College’s Board of Trustees, resulted from an extensive 
and rigorous search process. The Search Committee, which included 
alumni, students and faculty, spent nearly a year soliciting input from 
the Dartmouth community and identifying and reviewing a wide range 
of candidates.
    Dartmouth College enrolls approximately 4,100 undergraduates in 
the liberal arts and 1,700 graduate students. Drawing faculty and 
students from around the world, Dartmouth is committed to advancing 
the principles of liberal education within a diverse community of 
students, teachers and scholars. In addition to 19 graduate programs 
in the arts and sciences, it is home to the nation's fourth-oldest medical 
school: the Dartmouth Medical School , founded in 1797; the nation's 
first professional school of engineering: the Thayer School of 
Engineering, founded in 1867; and the first graduate school of 
management in the world: the Tuck School of Business, established 
in 1900.

3/3/09 AFP: " First Asian-American named to head Ivy university,"
    Washington (AFP) — Dartmouth College on Monday named a South 
Korean-born health expert as its president, becoming the first Asian-
American to head a university in the prestigious Ivy League.
    Jim Yong Kim, 49, is a former director of the HIV/AIDS department 
of the World Health Organization where he was credited with helping 
expand access to lifesaving treatment in the developing world.
    "Our goal at the World Health Organization was to raise aspirations
about what can be achieved in the treatment of HIV/AIDS, and I see the
same vision and sense of purpose at Dartmouth today," Kim said in a
statement.
    Kim will take over on July 1 as president of Dartmouth College , 
which was founded in 1769 in Hanover , New Hampshire , the university 
statement said.
    Kim becomes the first Asian-American to lead a school in the Ivy 
League, a group of eight universities in the northeastern United States
which historically were a breeding ground for the elite.
    Kim was born in the South Korean capital Seoul and moved with his
family at age five to the midwestern US state of Iowa .
    He went to the public high school in Muscatine , a town on the
Mississippi River , where he was the class valedictorian and played 
quarterback on the American football team.
    Named in 2006 as one of Time magazine's 100 most influential 
people, Kim helped found Partners in Health, which aims to expand 
quality health care to the world's poor.
    He is currently chair of the Department of Global Health and Social 
Medicine at Harvard Medical School . Dartmouth said Kim would 
continue to teach undergraduates in his new role.
    Some 14 million Americans are of Asian descent, or five percent of
the total population. Their number is expected to nearly triple in 2050 
to 41 million, government figures show.
    President Barack Obama has named a record three Asian-
Americans to his cabinet.
    Asian-Americans have gained a reputation for high achievement in
universities. But some community activists have called the image 
harmful, saying that Asian-Americans' needs -- often cultural and 
linguistic -- go overlooked in US education policy.

2/19/09 Wall Street Journal : "Job-Discrimination Cases Tend To Fare
Poorly in Federal Court,"
by Nathan Koppel
    Workers recently gained new ammunition to file job-discrimination cases
in federal court, but they still face long odds against emerging victorious.
    A battery of recent studies shows that employees who sue over
discrimination lose at a higher rate in federal court than other types of
plaintiffs. They also get less time in court, with judges quicker to throw out
their cases.
    Many employee advocates hope the Obama administration will herald a
better climate for discrimination claims. President Barack Obama last
month signed the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which makes it easier for
workers to sue over pay discrimination on the basis of gender, race, age or
disability by extending the legal deadline to file suit. Experts think the act
will lead to a surge in employment cases in federal court.
    Just because more workers have standing to sue doesn't mean that they
will receive a better reception in court, if previous patterns hold steady.
From 1979 through 2006, federal plaintiffs won 15% of job-discrimination
cases. By comparison, in all other civil cases, the win rate was 51%,
according to a study to be published this month by the Harvard Law & Policy
Review. "Judges demand more of discrimination cases than other types of
cases," says Stewart Schwab, a co-author of the study and the dean of
Cornell University Law School .
    The odds against winning discrimination cases have some employee
lawyers reluctant even to try. "We will no longer take individual employment-
discrimination cases, because there's such a high likelihood of losing,"
New York plaintiffs' attorney Joe Whatley Jr. says. Job-discrimination case
filings declined by 40% from 1999 to 2007, federal court records show.
    The bad track record for discrimination cases has been ascribed to
everything from a dearth of minorities on the bench to inherent difficulties in
proving job discrimination, which is rarely overt.
    Another reason why discrimination suits might fare poorly, say lawyers
who represent employers, is that companies can be quick to settle suits that
appear credible. Cases that aren't settled, says Dallas defense attorney
Michael Maslanka, often are frivolous and should be dismissed. Adds
Lawrence Lorber, a defense lawyer in Washington : "If it's a real case, they
settle. Employers aren't dumb."
    The case of Vicky Crawford illustrates the challenges faced by some
workers in federal court, critics say. A Tennessee government employee,
Ms. Crawford in 2002 was asked whether she had witnessed inappropriate
behavior by a colleague. Ms. Crawford reported that the colleague had on
one occasion grabbed her head and pulled it to his crotch.
    Ms. Crawford was later fired, but her retaliation claim was tossed out
by a Tennessee federal judge, and later upheld by the Sixth U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals. Since Ms. Crawford hadn't instigated a complaint, but
had merely answered investigators' questions, she didn't qualify to bring a
retaliation suit, the courts held. The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously
reversed the rulings in January, calling the lower courts' interpretation of
federal law "freakish." The Supreme Court's ruling in the Crawford case,
however, applies only to a narrow sliver of employment claims.
    Even the federal courts have detected the pattern of more dismissals in
discrimination cases, though they surmise different reasons for it than do
plaintiffs' lawyers. A report last year by the Federal Judicial Center , the
research arm of the federal courts, found that judges nationwide terminated
12.5% of employment-discrimination cases through summary judgments,
before the suits reached trial. In 90% of those cases, it was the employers
who requested the summary judgment. In contrast, the study found, 3% of
contract cases and 1.7% of personal-injury and property-damage suits
were dismissed via summary judgments.
    One possible explanation, says David Hittner, a U.S. District Court judge
in Houston , is that employers generally have become more careful to avoid
discriminatory behavior. They also are better at documenting the reasons
behind firings. "Companies often have an extensive record that this
[employee] was not doing their job well and that is the reason for the
termination," Judge Hittner says.
    Equally troubling to critics, though, is that federal judges also now
routinely terminate employment-discrimination cases through motions to
dismiss, meaning that the plaintiffs aren't allowed to conduct fact finding to
support their claims, according to a law-review study due to be published
in August by the University of Illinois College of Law.
    The study analyzed the impact of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2007 ruling
in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, which authorized federal judges to dismiss
cases unless plaintiffs can detail enough facts in their initial complaints to
state a "plausible" claim -- a higher standard than previously existed.
Although the Twombly case involved an antitrust dispute, it has since been
applied broadly to discrimination cases, says Joseph Seiner, a professor
at the University of South Carolina School of Law, who wrote the study.
    As an example of the kind of case that has suffered, Mr. Seiner pointed
to Mangum v. Town of Holly Springs, in which a North Carolina federal
judge last year dismissed a female firefighter's claim that she had been
subjected to a hostile work environment. The judge cited Twombly in
dismissing the sexual-harassment claim. Mr. Seiner says "such a
harassment allegation should at least get to the stage where you take
depositions."


2/17/09 CQ Politics: "Wanted: Asian American Circuit Judges,"
by Seth Stern
    Asian American legal groups are hoping President Obama adds some
of their own to the Circuit Courts of Appeals, which haven't had a single 
active Asian American judge for five years.
    That's been the case since A. Wallace "Wally" Tashima, a judge on the
Ninth Circuit, took senior status in 2004, according to the National Asian 
Pacific American Bar Association. Eight District Court judges are Asian 
American, including the first-ever south Asian, Amul Thapar, who was 
confirmed to a seat in the Eastern District of Kentucky in 2007.
    "It is very important to make sure the federal judiciary reflects the 
communities that it serves and that it has the perspectives of Asian 
Americans," says Karen Narasaki, the president of the Asian American 
Justice Center .
    John Yang, a Washington , D.C. attorney who co-chairs the National 
Asian Pacific American Bar Association's judiciary committee, pointed 
to several potential candidates for seats on the Second, Ninth and 
DC Circuits.
    Two are sitting District Court judges nominated by President Clinton: 
Denny Chin, 55, of the Southern District of New York and George King, 58,
of the Central District of California.
    Two others are academics: Yale Law School Dean Harold Koh and 
Berkeley law professor Goodwin Liu.
    Then there's Ivan K. Fong, recently nominated as general counsel of the
Department of Homeland Security, who was a deputy associate attorney 
general during the Clinton administration.
    And if Obama wants to nominate yet another of his classmates from
Harvard Law School , he could choose A. Marisa Chun, who previously 
worked in the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.
    One wild card nominee would be Bill Lann Lee, whose nomination to 
be assistant attorney general overseeing the Civil Rights Division ran into 
heavy Republican resistance. He ultimately served as acting attorney 
general.
    Yang says he was encouraged by reports last week that Preet Bharara,
who serves as counsel to Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., could be 
nominated to the high profile post of U.S. Attorney for the Southern District
of New York.


[Hint: Liberal Democrats have been California's U.S. Senators since
1992 and Liberal Democrats run San Francisco.  Therefore, Liberal 
Democrats are Bigots for the Left who discriminate against Asian 
Americans!]
2/17/09 San Francisco Chronicle: “An indefensible lack of diversity on the 
U.S. District Court,”
by Celia W. Lee and Ken Kawaichi
    Given the rich diversity of the San Francisco Bay Area and its unique 
history of significant legal cases involving Asian Pacific Americans, it is 
surprising and shocking that no Asian Pacific American has ever been 
appointed to serve as a judge with lifetime tenure on the U.S. District Court 
for the Northern District of California.
    The absence of an Asian Pacific American jurist on the federal bench is 
a stark contrast to the Asian Pacific American jurists who sit on the state 
courts in Northern California , where there are 27 Superior Court judges, 
two commissioners, a justice on the Court of Appeal and two justices on 
the Supreme Court. Even with that number of Asian Pacific American jurists
on the bench, state courts have not achieved parity with the Asian Pacific 
American population, which constitutes 33 percent of San Francisco 's 
population and about 20 percent of the Bay Area population. But at least 
there is progress. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger recently appointed five 
Asian Pacific American judges in Santa Clara , Alameda and San Francisco
counties.
    The first step to remedying the embarrassing lack of diversity on the 
bench is obvious - appoint a qualified Asian Pacific American judge to 
the U.S. District Court in the Northern District.
    A second imperative step would be to appoint an Asian Pacific American
judge to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco , the
federal appellate court for California . No active Asian American judge sits 
on the Ninth Circuit. In fact, there are no active Asian American judges in any
Circuit Courts of Appeals in the United States .
    Clearly, many of the arguments we make are applicable to Latinos, African
Americans and Native Americans and we would support efforts to diversify 
all the courts of this country. But given the remarkable history we've recounted
here of this U.S. District Court, the demographics of Northern California and 
the absence of any Asian Pacific American judge on the bench, the time to 
appoint is now.
    Significant legal rulings from California  
    The U.S. District Court for the Northern District was the locus of some of 
the most significant constitutional law decisions in U.S. history. These 
decisions found their way to the Supreme Court, affecting the lives of all 
Americans and influencing the development of American jurisprudence.
    In Yick Wo vs. Hopkins, one of the earliest civil rights cases in American 
history, the Supreme Court in 1886 struck down a discriminatory San 
Francisco ordinance targeting Chinese Americans.
    In Wong Kim Ark vs. the United States , a landmark immigration case in 
1898, the Supreme Court applied the 14th Amendment to grant citizenship 
to an American of Chinese ancestry born in the United States .
    In Korematsu vs. United States , one of the most infamous civil rights 
cases in American history, the Supreme Court upheld the forced exclusion 
and detention of 120,000 Americans of Japanese ancestry during World 
War II without the right to notice of charges, the right to attorneys or the right 
to a trial. Forty years later, in 1984, Judge Marilyn Hall Patel of the Northern 
District court overturned Korematsu's conviction, ruling that there was no 
good justification for the internment.
    In Lau vs. Nichols, a suit brought by Chinese American students living in
San Francisco , the Supreme Court expanded the rights of all students 
throughout the country with limited English skills by requiring language 
accommodation.
    Source: Asian American Bar Association for the Greater Bay Area 
    Celia W. Lee is president of the Asian American Bar Association for 
the Greater Bay Area. Judge Ken Kawaichi is a retired judge of the 
Alameda Superior Court and one of the founders of the Asian American 
Bar Association for the Greater Bay Area. For more information, go to
www.aaba-bay.com.

2/17/09 Los Angeles Times: “The greater reality of minorities on TV: While 
scripted shows still largely reflect a white male society, the faces we see on
reality shows are more diverse,”
by Greg Braxton
    The much-maligned world of reality television is winning praise these 
days for "keeping it real" in an unexpectedly relevant way -- reflecting a more
diverse America than its more highbrow cousins in scripted prime-time 
shows.
    Despite decades of public pressure on the major networks to diversify, 
the lead characters in all but a few of prime-time scripted shows this season
are still white -- and usually young and affluent. In contrast, reality programs 
consistently feature a much broader range of people when it comes to race,
age, class and sexual orientation.
    For example, CBS' "The Amazing Race" includes an Asian American 
brother-and-sister team and two African American sisters in its 14th season,
which premiered Sunday. Three African Americans are in the current cast of
CBS' "Survivor." Four African Americans and two Tongan Americans have 
been featured on the current season of NBC's "The Biggest Loser." 
    By contrast, a report released last year by the National Assn. for the 
Advancement of Colored People, titled "Out of Focus -- Out of Sync," 
accused the networks of perpetuating a view of the nation that recalls 
" America 's segregated past." The 40-page report charged that non-whites
are underrepresented in almost every aspect of the television industry -- 
except for reality programming.
    That's no accident, according to reality TV producers and creators.
    "We're looking to create shows that everyday people can relate to, and 
for that you really need a true representation of the population," said Dave
Broome, executive producer of NBC's "The Biggest Loser."
    "A couple of seasons ago, there was an over-the-top character who was
white that we could have cast, but we sacrificed that for a Latino. That's how
important that is."
    The culture mix is driven by more than just political correctness. Although
reality shows aren't directly in the business of bringing racial and ethnic 
enlightenment to America , they are in business. For shows that thrive on 
conflict and drama, a collection of cast members from varied backgrounds
often serves that goal. Unresolved issues surrounding race, class and 
sexual orientation can either quietly fuel tension on programs or generate 
outright emotional explosions. 
    "I don't believe the makers of unscripted programs are necessarily all 
pro-social," said Jonathan Murray of Bunim-Murray Productions, whose 
shows include MTV's reality veteran "The Real World." "A lot of times it 
comes down to the fact that diversity just makes those shows better."
    Of course, being involved in reality TV is not always an uplifting 
experience. Participants are subject to humiliation on the air (and, 
occasionally, eternal infamy on YouTube). The more outrageous the 
show's concept, the more likely contestants are to be ridiculed or even 
scorned. But at least unscripted television is an equal-opportunity offender.
    Though the issue of race is often secondary to unscripted series' story 
lines, it does at times directly fuel the drama. William "Mega" Collins, an
outspoken African American houseguest on the first edition of CBS' "Big
Brother," was the first evicted from the show after he angrily confronted his
predominantly white fellow participants about race. CBS' "Survivor" in 
2006 sparked a furor when the series initially divided tribes along racial 
and ethnic lines. 
    Just as the military and professional sports -- two arenas not heralded 
for their liberal thought -- became the unlikely vessels for breaking racial 
barriers decades ago, reality programming may be a similarly 
transformational force in bringing greater diversity to television today.
    Vic Bulluck, executive director of the NAACP's Hollywood office, noted:
"The marketplace has changed, and the producers of reality shows are 
obviously more sensitive or conscious of that change than the producers 
of scripted shows. It really comes down to relevance."
    Minority contestants have often done well in competition shows, such 
as ABC's "Dancing With the Stars" and Fox's "Hell's Kitchen." By winning
week after week, these contestants in effect become some of the 
programs' leading characters.
    (Two notable exceptions in which a reality program has yet to spotlight 
a person of color are ABC's dating franchise shows "The Bachelor" and 
"The Bachelorette." In 17 total seasons, neither show's main role has ever 
been filled with a person of color. ABC representatives say they are 
"exploring" the issue for upcoming seasons.)
    That's seldom the case with scripted comedies and dramas. Though 
the major networks -- ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC -- have in recent years 
made noticeable strides in assembling multicultural casts in ensemble 
shows such as "Heroes," "ER," "Lost" and "Grey's Anatomy," there are 
still only five network shows with a minority actor playing a clear central 
character: NBC's "Law & Order" (Anthony Anderson), ABC's "Ugly Betty"
(America Ferrera), ABC's "Desperate Housewives" (Eva Longoria Parker),
CBS' "The Unit" (Dennis Haysbert) and CBS' "CSI: Crime Scene 
Investigation" (Laurence Fishburne). (In the 15 midseason network scripted
series, including Fox's "Dollhouse," ABC's "In the Motherhood" and NBC's
"Kings," only a few have a person of color in a central role.)
    Network executives say that comparing the two genres is unfair and that
scripted shows are governed by creative restrictions that don't apply to 
reality TV.
    "When you're casting for an unscripted show, it's a much bigger universe
and a whole different talent base," said Nina Tassler, president of CBS 
Entertainment. "It's real people versus actors."
    "The casting in unscripted shows informs the storytelling," she said. "That
kind of show starts as an idea, but then the story is developed by the cast.
A scripted show is the brainchild of a creator who has a very specific vision."
    Still, critics like Kristal Brent Zook, author of "I See Black People: 
Interviews With African American Owners of Radio and Television," argue 
that diversity behind the camera in scripted programming will increase it in 
front of it. "It all comes down to what goes on in the writing room," Zook said. 
"It's a reflection on their imagination, or lack thereof. It's going to remain this
way until you bring in people with wider experience."



2/9/09 Boston Globe: "Yoon launches a pioneering bid for mayor,"
by John C. Drake and Matt Collette 
    Sam Yoon, who vaulted onto Boston's political scene when he was 
elected the city's first Asian-American city councilor just four years ago, will 
look to break down another barrier this fall, seeking the seat of Mayor 
Thomas M. Menino in an upstart bid that has drawn interest from coast to 
coast.
    Yoon, who has been publicly weighing a mayoral run since last fall, said 
yesterday he is running, joining At-Large Councilor Michael F. Flaherty Jr.
and South End business owner Kevin McCrea in a now-crowded field to be
the city's chief executive.
    "This weekend, my wife, Tina, and I spent some time talking about what
a mayoral race would mean for our family," said Yoon, 39. "We reached a
decision. We prayed about it, and I am going to be entering the race for
mayor."
    Yoon is not only the first Asian-American to seek the job, according to 
longtime political observers, but he is an unconventional candidate for other
reasons as well. He does not have deep Boston roots, having moved to 
Dorchester from Arlington two years before he ran for City Council in 2005.
Born in Seoul , Yoon grew up in Pennsylvania . He became a naturalized 
US citizen when he was 10.
    Yoon holds a master's degree in public policy from Harvard's Kennedy
School of Government and worked in various community organizations in
Boston before running for City Council.
    Word that Yoon was considering a run for mayor first hit Boston in 
September while he was touting his potential as a rising Asian-American
politician on a West Coast fund-raising trip. And his 2008 campaign finance
reports show that 58 percent of his campaign contributions came from 
donors outside Massachusetts , including a large network of Asian-American
supporters in California and elsewhere.
    In an interview with the Globe yesterday, Yoon declined to offer specifics
about his campaign plans, saying he would save that for a formal 
announcement to come in the next few weeks.
    "The campaign will be about the city's future, not about its past, and that's
the rubric that I'm going to be working with."
    Yoon said he called each of his potential opponents yesterday to inform
them of his plans.
    Flaherty, an at-large councilor from South Boston who announced his 
mayoral run two weeks ago, said yesterday he welcomed Yoon's candidacy.
    " Boston residents deserve a real campaign where ideas to make Boston
a better city are thoughtfully debated," Flaherty said in an interview. "I have
always subscribed to the theory that competition is good."
    McCrea, who ran unsuccessfully for City Council in 2005, agreed that 
having more candidates in the race was good for the city.
    "I think it's very good for the citizens of Boston that we're going to have an
actual mayor's race where we can actually talk about moving the city forward,
about talking about real issues and problems," he said.
    Menino, who has swatted away challenges from city councilors in the 
previous two election cycles, has not officially announced whether he will 
seek an unprecedented fifth term this year. He has said he is too engaged 
in steering the city out of a financial crisis. His spokeswoman did not return 
calls and an e-mail yesterday seeking comment
    Yoon's and Flaherty's candidacies also mean there will be two open 
at-large seats on the City Council for the fall election. Open seats are rare, 
and multiple openings are rarer.
    Lawrence S. DiCara, a former city councilor and longtime political 
observer, said it will be the first time since the city switched to a system of 
nine district councilors and four at-large councilors in 1983 that there will be
two openings in the same year for the coveted at-large spots.
    "This adds to what could be the highest turnout in a generation" for a city
election, DiCara said.
    DiCara said city politics has changed significantly since people 
questioned whether an Italian-American could be elected mayor before 
Menino broke that barrier in 1993.
    "All those walls have toppled down," DiCara said. "The old rules that you
had to be from a large family and have been in politics a long time and all 
the rest of those things that seem to have determined who was mayor are
all history. It's a very different city."
    He pointed to the increasing number of young families of all races who 
have moved into his Jamaica Plain neighborhood.
    But Yoon's candidacy will face significant obstacles, not least of which 
is fund-raising. Yoon had $140,000 on hand at the end of January, 
campaign finance reports show. Flaherty has more than $600,000 to 
spend on the race, while Menino commands a war chest of about 
$1.4 million. McCrea has less than $1,000 on hand.
    Yoon has pointed to the challenge of raising money alongside more 
entrenched city politicians in defending his prolific out-of-state fund-raising.
    During his three and a half years on City Council, Yoon has focused 
much of his criticism of the administration on process-oriented concerns.
He has voted against the city budget each year on the grounds that the 
budget-writing process is not transparent enough.
    Beyond that, his record, like that of many other councilors under the 
city's strong-mayor form of government, is thin with few high-profile 
accomplishments.
    But the ground-breaking potential for his run is likely to give more 
attention to his campaign than would normally be afforded to a two-term
councilor seeking the job. Yoon would be the city's first nonwhite mayor.
Several black candidates have run unsuccessfully for the office.
    "It's a historic candidacy in that seldom in the history of Boston have 
people who are nonwhite challenged the sitting leadership," said Paul 
Watanabe, a political scientist and director of the Institute for Asian 
American Studies at the University of Massachusetts at Boston.
    And Councilor John Tobin said that Yoon could benefit from an 
apparent interest in voters to reward ambitious newcomers.
    "He hasn't lived in the city that long, or even been on the council for
long," Tobin said. "But it wasn't that long ago when people couldn't 
pronounce [Governor] Deval Patrick's first name. I think the days of 
waiting your turn, this caste system, has been shattered in politics."


2/6/09 National Review.com: "Staving Off the 'Yellow Peril': The University 
of California regents attempt to curtail Asian admissions,"
by Stephan Thernstrom
    In 1995, the regents of the University of California , at the urging of Ward 
Connerly and Gov. Pete Wilson, voted to bar racial preferences on all nine 
of the system's campuses. A year later, the state's voters passed 
Proposition 209, an amendment to the constitution that extended that ban 
to state and local governments. But today, the regents are expected to 
approve major changes in admissions policies that represent the most 
recent of many misguided attempts to circumvent Prop 209.
    The move is breathtaking. It will drop the requirement that applicants take
two SAT "subject tests"; if the students the school wants tend to do poorly 
on such tests, then it is best not to know just how poorly.  The plan also 
sharply lowers the academic standards that applicants must meet to be 
eligible for a "full admissions review." This review is where their distinctive 
"personal qualities" can be discerned and made to count for more than the
weaknesses in their academic performance.
    These changes are manifestly driven by the desire to bring in more black
and Hispanic students. Remarkably, though, the university's own projections
indicate that the plan will do almost nothing to expand black enrollment and
will be of very modest benefit to Hispanics. Even more remarkably, the 
prime beneficiaries of the changes will be non-Hispanic whites, whose 
share of total enrollments is predicted to rise by 20-30 percent.
    And the big losers will be Asian Americans, whose numbers will be 
reduced by 10-20 percent. The net effect will thus be to make the University
of California substantially "whiter" than it has been.
    That's ironic, because when the battle for race-blind admissions began,
opponents worried that Prop 209 would transform UC into a "lily white" 
institution. This dire prophecy proved ludicrously far from the mark. 
    The big gainers were not white applicants; they were Asian Americans. 
    Although only 12 percent of the state's population, Asians accounted for
37 percent of UC admissions in 2008.  
    Also, while black and Hispanic enrollments at the most selective campuses
(Berkeley and UCLA) did fall sharply, rises at places like Riverside and Irvine
more than offset the declines. In fact, the Hispanic share of total UC 
enrollments has risen dramatically over the past dozen years, from 14 to 22
percent. Black students made gains too, though slight ones. More important,
minority graduation rates have improved substantially, now that these 
students are no longer "mismatched" as a result of racial double standards.
    Although these numbers indicate that blacks and Hispanics, particularly 
the latter, have fared well under race-blind admissions, university officials 
have long been tinkering with the rules in an effort to bring in more 
"underrepresented minorities." Standardized tests have counted for less
and less, and admissions have become more "holistic"-i.e., subjective.
    Demonstrating that an applicant has "overcome disadvantage" has 
become more important than demonstrating that he grasps quadratic 
equations and can write a literate essay.
    It's hard to believe that, as part of this mission, the regents are deliberately
trying to do their bit to stave off the "yellow peril." 
    But proponents of racial preferences have let slip some highly unsavory 
attitudes on occasion. My wife, Abigail, appeared on Crossfire many years
ago and was asked by liberal co-host Bob Beckel whether she would "like
to see UCLA Law School 80 percent Asian." In a 1995 interview, President
Clinton said that "there are universities in California that could fill their 
entire freshman classes with nothing but Asian Americans." In 1998, a 
writer for Newsday asked, "Since Asians outscore everyone, would we 
accept an all-Asian class?"
    Nasty stuff, and not aberrational. If you truly believe that it is unjust that 
some groups are "underrepresented" at elite institutions, it follows 
inexorably that no groups may be "overrepresented." 
    Mathematically, when no one is underrepresented, no one is 
overrepresented. Since Asians have more than triple their "proper share"
of places at the University of California , and quadruple their share at 
Berkeley and UCLA, they are the chief obstacle to "equity" in higher 
education.
    A high-school counselor interviewed by Inside Higher Education denied 
that the university officials who dreamed up the new plan were motivated 
by anti-Asian prejudice. He contended that the drop in the number of 
Asians admitted is just "collateral damage." The metaphor misleads. 
The new admissions policy is likely not motivated by a desire to cut back
on Asian enrollments but by a desire to expand the enrollments of other
groups. But if you can't do much of the latter without a lot of the former, this
is a distinction without a difference.
- Stephan Thernstrom is Winthrop Research Professor of History at 
Harvard University. His books include America in Black and White: One 
Nation, Indivisible and No Excuses: Closing the Racial Gap in Learning, 
both co-authored with his wife, Abigail.  


2/5/09 Inside Higher Ed: “Unintentional Whitening of U. of California ?”
by Scott Jaschik
    For several years now, the University of California has been debating 
plans to drop the SAT Subject Tests (formerly called the SAT II or 
achievement tests) and to find ways to consider more minority applicants.
The debate has focused on the relative merits (or lack thereof) of the SAT
and how to promote diversity while not violating the state’s ban on 
affirmative action.
    In the past few days, however, a new issue has started to attract attention:
concerns that the admissions policy changes that are expected to be 
approved by the Board of Regents today could lead to a significant drop in
the numbers of Asian-American applicants who are admitted — with the
major gains going to white applicants.
    According to data prepared by the university and just starting to receive
attention, 36 percent of those admitted to the university system in 2007-8
were Asian Americans. Applying the new admissions standards, that 
percentage would drop to 29-32 percent. In contrast, white applicants 
made up 34 percent of those admitted in 2007-8. Under the proposed 
reforms, they would have made up 41 to 44 percent of the entering class.
The bottom line is that Asian Americans would shift from being the largest
group gaining admission to the University of California to the second.
    Some Asian American groups are calling on the Board of Regents to 
hold off on any vote today, raising questions about the fairness and 
wisdom of the changes being considered. (A board subcommittee 
approved the plan Wednesday, unanimously.)
    “All of us share the goal of trying to preserve excellence as well as to 
promote diversity. But the gains for Latinos and African Americans in 
these projections are very small, while the decreases for Asian Americans
and the gains for whites are quite large,” said Vincent Pan, president of
Chinese for Affirmative Action, a national group based in California. 
“There’s almost a swapping out of Asian students for white students. Let’s
not rush this thing.”
    But university leaders are playing down the demographic projections and
defending the admissions plan, which emerged from the Academic Senate,
a system-wide faculty group. Mark G. Yudof, president of the university, said
in a statement of the proposal: “It also sends a clear message to California
high school students that if they work hard, take challenging courses and do
well, they will get to make their case for admission to UC.” The university
system has been praised by faculty and student groups for the planned shift.
    Admission to the University of California is enormously competitive, and 
families in the state long to be able to send children to its prestigious 
campuses, where they can be educated at top research universities at a
fraction of what they would pay for a private institution. In California , race
and admissions have been tangled and divisive for years. The success of
Asian American students in winning admission to UC campuses has meant
that those institutions are in many ways more diverse than much of American
higher education. But the state’s ban on affirmative action in public university
admissions has depressed the admission of black and Latino students.
    The proposal before the Board of Regents today would do the following:
    End the requirement that applicants submit two SAT Subject Test scores. 
    Narrow from the top 12.5 to the top 9 percent of high school graduates the
percentage who will be guaranteed admission to the university system 
(although not necessarily to the campus of their choice). 
    Expand the definition of applicants eligible for a full admission review to
include all who complete 11 of 15 required high school courses by the end
of their junior year, and achieve a grade-point average of at least 3.0 
    The last shift is expected to greatly expand the pool of those entitled to a
full admissions review, where personal qualities and other factors may help
some win admission. Indeed those deemed eligible for a full review would
go up in all racial and ethnic groups. But the gains in eligibility are not 
necessarily going to translate into gains in admissions for all groups — or
into gains that reflect the gains in those eligible for a full review.

    Projected Impact of Admissions Changes on Different Racial and 
Ethnic Groups