Good morning, and welcome to The Yappie’s AAPI politics briefing — your guide to the policy news and activism affecting Asian Americans + Pacific Islanders. Send tips and feedback to [email protected] and support our work by making a donation.
— Edited by Shawna Chen
Here’s what else is happening across America…
🇮🇳 The Department of Justice announced charges against a man who prosecutors say participated in a conspiracy plot to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Sikh separatist leader residing in New York City, Associated Press’ Ashok Sharma and Larry Neumeister report.
- Pannun, an immigration lawyer and dual U.S.-Canadian citizen, is known for his advocacy for a sovereign Sikh state and has a large following on social media, where he often posts videos that include language described as threatening towards Indian leaders, Al Jazeera notes. He is considered a terrorist by the Indian government, which has denied involvement in the plot.
😷 When it comes to health coverage, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders who reside outside of Hawai‘i are two times more likely to be uninsured compared to those who live in Hawai‘i, according to a new policy brief published by the nonprofit KFF. That’s largely due to the state’s mandate that employers provide insurance for employees who work at least 20 hours per week.
- Meanwhile: Medicaid coverage rates range from 17% among Chamorro people to 29% among Samoan and Marshallese people, the analysis shows—the result of disparities among noncitizen NHPI subgroups who face restrictions on eligibility for Medicaid.
🔎 A new Pew Research Center survey shows that 57% of Asian adults say discrimination against Asians living in the U.S. is a major problem. 63% believe that too little attention is paid to racial issues regarding Asians.
⛰️ Leaders of the Pacific Islands are increasingly turning to climate solutions beyond COP28, where they are at the forefront of negotiations for the pending Loss and Damage Fund. They have long emphasized the need to limit global warming to no more than 1.5 degrees Celsius.
🗳️ AAPI voters continue to demonstrate their increasing political strength in New York elections, leading party candidates to strategize on how to capture their votes, New York Times’ Jeffery C. Mays reports.
🌺 Native Hawaiians are working to restore the sacred island Moku‘ula after the deadly Lahaina wildfires, AsAmNews’ Nigel Whan writes. The land is a spiritual center for the community and serves as a burial site for several Hawaiian royals.
✏️ New research finds that Asian American educators face microaggressions at extremely high rates. Unlike more explicit acts of discrimination, microaggressions are more subtle everyday interactions that invalidate a marginalized group’s experiences—intentional or not.
- “People are often unaware of how their internal biases bleed out in everyday conversations with others, so one strategy for responding to microaggressions is rooted in a simple goal: Call attention to what’s not being said,” Diana Lee writes in a column for EdSurge. “Make the underlying assumptions visible by pointing it out.”
🎨 Springdale, Alaska has unveiled a new mural celebrating Marshallese culture by local Marshallese artist Helmar Anitok. Springdale is said to have the largest Marshallese population in the continental U.S.
🗾 The recent fatal crash of a U.S. military Osprey airplane in Japan has reignited safety concerns and sparked fear regarding its impact on the status of the U.S.-Japan alliance, Kyodo News’ Keita Nakamura writes. Experts are encouraging the U.S. to halt all Osprey flights in response to demands for better operational management of military bases in Asia and Tokyo.
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