This afternoon, the President met with a group of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) national leaders to discuss his call for commonsense immigration reform that will strengthen the economy and grow the middle class. The President emphasized that commonsense immigration reform continues to be a top legislative priority and that he looks forward to working with the AAPI community to achieve that goal. The leaders expressed their support for the principles that the President and key Senators working on immigration reform have laid out and their strong desire for a bill that provides a pathway to earned citizenship and supports family unity. The leaders also expressed their commitment to working with Congress to strengthen the legislation that is being considered. The President and the leaders also discussed a number of issues of importance to Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, including efforts to provide affordable, accessible health care to AAPI communities. Finally, the President thanked participants for their leadership and commitment to ensuring that the American Dream remains attainable for all communities and families, as well as generations to come.
Participants in the meeting included:
• Jeffrey Caballero, Executive Director, Association of Asian Pacific Community Health Organizations
• Gregory Cendana, Executive Director, Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance
• Kathy Ko Chin, President and CEO, Asian & Pacific Islander American Health Forum
• Robin Danner, President and CEO, Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement
• Lisa Hasegawa, Executive Director, National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development
• Tom Hayashi, Executive Director, OCA National Center
• Bill Imada, Chairman, Asian/Pacific Islander American Chamber of Commerce and Entrepreneurship
• Deepa Iyer, Chair, National Council of Asian Pacific Americans & Executive Director, South Asian Americans Leading Together
• Daphne Kwok, Chair, President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
• Floyd Mori, President and CEO, Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies
• Mee Moua, President and Executive Director, Asian American Justice Center
• Priscilla Ouchida, Executive Director, Japanese American Citizens League
• Doua Thor, Executive Director, Southeast Asia Resource Action Center
• Miriam Yeung, Executive Director, National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
• Dae Joong “DJ” Yoon, Executive Director, National Korean American Service & Education Consortium