BEIJING (May 3, 2012) — United States Ambassador to China Gary Locke spoke with media Thursday regarding the dissident Chen Guangcheng, who escaped custody to the U.S. Embassy and brokered a deal with the Chinese government to let he and his family apply for student status in New York where he would heal from torture but not make the United States home and never asked for asylum at the Embassy.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Barack Obama on April 26, 2012 named the late Gordon Hirabayashi as one of 13 recipients of this year’s Presidential Medal of Freedom awards. It is the nation’s highest civilian honor presented to Hirabayashi, who passed away earlier this year on Jan. 2.

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WASHINGTON (April 30, 2012) — The White House Office of the Press Secretary reported that President Barack Obama welcomed Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda of Japan on Monday to discuss United States-Japan Cooperative Initiatives.

It is the first visit to the United States by a Japanese Prime Minister in the bilateral context since the change of government took place in Japan.

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AAP staff report

WASHINGTON (April 30, 2012) — The U.S. Department of State hosted a historic gathering to celebrate “Deepening the Security and Strategic Partnership”, and event to reflect the deep-rooted and multifaceted relationship between the United States and The Philippines.

The event followed meetings between U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, who met with their Philippine counterparts, Secretary of Foreign Affairs Albert del Rosario and Secretary of Defense Voltaire Gazmin on Monday in Washington, D.C.

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WASHINGTON DC (April 30, 2012) – The Sikh Coalition and other prominent national civil rights leaders released a game-changing mobile application that enables users to report instances of airport profiling in real time.

The Monday launch event at the offices of the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights in Washington, D.C. was also streamed at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/sikhcoalition.

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Stewart Ishimaru

WASHINGTON (April 30, 2012) — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced that Stuart Ishimaru has been selected to head the newly established Office of Minority and Women Inclusion. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau established its Office of Minority and Women Inclusion in January 2012.  Mr. Ishimaru comes to the CFPB from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

President George W. Bush nominated Mr. Ishimaru, on the recommendation of Sen. Tom Daschle, to be one of the five members of the Commission in 2003. In 2009, President Barack Obama named Mr. Ishimaru Acting Chairman of the Commission.

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Daphne Kwok

By DAPHNE KWOK

WASHINGTON, D.C. (May 2, 2012) — In 1990, Congress voted to have the month of May designated as Asian Pacific Heritage Month.

That means that for the past twenty two years, the accomplishments, the tragedies, and the triumphs of this vibrant and diverse community have been recognized as essential to the identity of this great nation.  As Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month turns 22, it is an opportunity for us all to reflect on other notable milestones that define our past, informed our present, and will shape our future.

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Rawley Soberano, Ph.D.

By Rawlein G. Soberano, Ph.D.

Germantown, MD (May 1, 2012) — In WI, a Dane County judge issued an injunction barring the state from using its new voter ID law. A hearing began April 25 with both sides presenting their opposing arguments to the Supreme Court. In the meantime, because the state did not successfully appeal the injunction, the new voter ID law was not in effect for the April 3 presidential primary.

If Gov. Jan Brewer wins this, Mitt Romney and many GOP candidates lose in the general elections in November. His entitlement claim to the presidency (by wife Ann), that it’s now his turn, will crumble to dust. SC has filed an appeal over DOJ’s denial of pre-clearance for its new voter ID law. DOJ found the law discriminatory because the state’s minority voters are 20 percent more likely than white voters to lack a photo ID that meets the standard. Thirty-one states require all voters to show ID before voting at the polls. In 15 of these, a voter with ID must include a photo of the voter; in the remaining 16, non-photo forms of ID are acceptable.

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By Francesca L. Covey

WASHINGTON (April 25, 2012) — The President on Wednesday delivered remarks at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and continued his call for Congress to stop interest rates on student loans from doubling in July.

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WASHINGTON (April 24, 2012) — The Chairs and members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Congressional Black Caucus and Congressional Hispanic Caucus joined with the National Immigration Forum to release the following statements regarding the hearing of United States v. Arizona before the U.S. Supreme Court this week:

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