The President’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders will meet in Honolulu next week — the first time the panel will convene a quarterly in- person meeting outside the mainland.
The commission will discuss and vote on recommendations from its six subcommittees on topics that include belonging and inclusion, anti-Asian hate and discrimination, language access, economic and health equity, and immigration and citizenship status, according to the meeting announcement in the Federal Register.
The AANHPI communities are among the fastest-growing racial and ethnic populations in the United States, the meeting notice said, yet they have faced an increase in hate crimes in recent years and have been significantly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of health and economic well-being.
A federal spokesperson told the Honolulu Star- Advertiser that holding the meeting in Honolulu is both a show of support for local communities and an opportunity for commissioners to witness firsthand the benefits of embracing and supporting Indigenous knowledge.
The commission meeting from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Thursday is open to the public only on a virtual basis via livestreaming.
On Friday, the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders will host an economic summit from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the state Capitol to connect federal and local resources with small business owners and improve access to federal contracting and procurement opportunities.
The commission is co-chaired by Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and U.S. Trade Representative Ambassador Katherine Tai. Among its 25 members are several with ties to Hawaii, including:
>> Amy Agbayani, an emeritus assistant vice chancellor for student diversity and equity at the University of Hawaii at Manoa and former chair of the Hawaii Civil Rights Commission. She is also a board member of the Patsy T. Mink PAC and The Legal Clinic, focused on immigrant justice in Hawaii.
>> Honolulu native Kimberly Chang, who earned her medical degree at the UH John A. Burns School of Medicine and is a board-certified family physician at Asian Health Services, a federally qualified community health center in Oakland, Calif. Chang has dedicated her career to focusing on the health of the underserved Asian American and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities, including those affected by human trafficking and exploitation, and has received numerous awards, most recently the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health 2020 Emerging Public Health Professional Award and the 2021 UCSF Alumni Humanitarian Service Award.
>> Kerry Doi, a fourth- generation Japanese American born on a Hawaii plantation, who is committed to social and economic justice through his leadership at Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment, one of the nation’s largest Asian-led community development organizations. He also is chair of the California Community Economic Development Association and vice chair and treasurer of the Los Angeles Housing Partnership.
>> Michelle Ka‘uhane, senior vice president of community grants and initiatives at Hawaii Community Foundation and former president and CEO of the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement. She sits on the Community Advisory Council at the Federal Reserve of San Francisco, offering perspectives on the economic and financial service needs of low- and moderate- income populations in Hawaii.
>> Daniel Dae Kim, an award-winning actor, director and producer who lives in Hawaii and serves as co-chair of the Asian American Foundation advisory committee.
>> Additionally, Krystal Ka‘ai, a Kamehameha Schools alumna, is executive director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders and has held positions with the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, the State of Hawaii and the Office of Hawaiian Affairs.
The commission’s six subcommittees’ approved draft regulations were released Friday and can be found at tinyurl.com/ 2zxh854t.
The deadline to sign up to provide oral public comment at the meeting has passed, but written comments can be emailed at any time to AANHPI Commission@hhs.gov, according to the meeting announcement.
Registration for both sessions is required and is free. To register and receive the livestreaming link for Thursday’s session, visit 808ne.ws/ comish06.
To register to attend Friday’s in-person economic summit at the Capitol, visit 808ne.ws/comish07.
Linsey Dower covers ethnic and cultural affairs and is a corps member of Report for America, a national service organization that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues and communities.
