Umair Khan
Counsel: for New York State Senator Kevin Parker
2003-2004 Fellow: office of Rep. Mike Honda.
Biography
Previously serving as the Assistant Counsel in the office of the New York Senate Majority Whip, Umair Khan is now the Counsel to the New York State Senator Kevin Parker. He was an APAICS Fellow from 2003-2004 in the office of Rep. Mike Honda.
Umair graduated from Albany Law School where he was the founder and student director of the Appellate Advocacy Project. Umair and his classmates filed amicus curiae briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court in Safford v. Redding and Ashcroft v. Iqbal. He published a law review titled Tortured Pleadings: The Historical Development and Recent Fall of the Liberal Pleadings Standard. He has also worked for U.S. District Judge Lawrence Kahn, U.S. Magistrate Judge Randolph Treece, and the Albany County District Attorney's Office, where he was first chair in two successful prosecutions.
Before coming to Albany, Umair served as a Legislative Assistant to Congressman Bob Filner (CA-51), worked on foreign policy issues and ethnic outreach for the Kerry-Edwards Presidential campaign, and served as the APAICS-Frank Horton Fellow with Congressman Mike Honda (CA-15). Umair received his BA in Government and Near Eastern Studies from Cornell University in 2003.
Tell us about your APAICS Fellowship experience.
"My fellowship in Congressman Honda’s office was my real first job. It was a tremendous opportunity in a very nurturing environment, but it was also very fast paced. Here I was, fresh out of college, being responsible for various policy issues and advising a Member of Congress. Within my first week, I was writing a letter to the Attorney General of the United States questioning the detainment of individuals after 9/11."
Why do you believe it’s important for Asian Pacific Americans to have a presence in government and policy?
"If not us, then who? Who better to advocate your community’s concern than you? You are facing those challenges, you are facing those hurdles. It is important to build coalitions, it’s important to do other things, but if you’re not at the table, then that perspective is being missed.
At the same time, being a part of APAICS, you realize that you’re not alone; that there are other people who are facing the same hurdles that you are. It’s really by working together with others, by learning, by enriching your own life, and by becoming well informed and more organized that you can then work to make a difference and address the issues that are of concern to your community and to others."
What advice do you have for future APAICS Fellows?
"Work hard. That is one of the most important things I can advise anybody: work hard, study hard, and be the best that you can be because you are representing your community. Oftentimes, we don’t get second chances, so take advantage of these opportunities because they’re rare and this is a very valuable experience. "
Donate
Follow Us
