APAICS Commends the Biden Administration on its Commitment and Response to Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders
WASHINGTON — Yesterday President Joe Biden announced several measures to address the needs of the Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) community. In addition to reaffirming his commitment to the AANHPI community, President Biden announced his intent to nominate Judge Florence Y. Pan to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Judge Zahid N. Quraishi to the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, Regina M. Rodriguez to the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, and Judge Rupa Ranga Puttagunta to the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.
If confirmed, these nominees would achieve several AANHPI milestones. Judge Pan would become the first Asian American woman to serve as a federal district court judge in the District of Columbia. Judge Quraishi would become the first Asian American to serve as a federal district court judge in New Jersey and the first American Muslim to serve as an Article III judge in the United States. Ms. Rodriguez would become the first AANHPI woman to serve as an Article III judge in the 10th Circuit. Judge Puttagunta would become the first Indian American woman to serve on the DC Superior Court.
In addition to the judicial nominees, the Biden administration took measures to ensure a more racially equitable future for AANHPIs. These measures include reinstating the White House Initiative on Asian American and Pacific Islanders (WHIAAPI), reducing language access barriers, improving data disaggregation on AANHPIs, and addressing anti-Asian violence by implementing agency-wide initiatives within the Department of Justice to combat anti-Asian hate.
APAICS thanks the Biden administration for nominating these highly qualified AANHPI nominees and for affirmatively taking steps to address the violence perpetrated against the Asian American community. We applaud the Biden administration for taking action and bringing us one step closer to a racially equitable for the greater AANHPI community.
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The Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (APAICS) is a national non-partisan, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting Asian Pacific American participation and representation at all levels of the political process, from community service to elected office. APAICS programs focus on developing leadership, building public policy knowledge, and filling the political pipeline for Asian Pacific Americans to pursue public office at the local, state, and federal levels.