We are heartbroken and angry at the senseless murders of at least 19 children and two adults yesterday in Uvalde, Texas, a primarily Latino community. Tuesday’s shooting was the eighth mass shooting in 13 years in Texas, where the Republican-dominated leadership has repeatedly loosened gun laws. “Top state officials again quickly signaled that the deaths in Uvalde would not likely lead to stricter gun control in the state and instead pushed for arming more teachers and adding police to school campuses,” reports the Texas Tribune.

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Today is the second anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. We condemn the systemic oppression of African Americans that contributed to his killing, embrace Black Lives Matter, and stand in full solidarity with our Black brothers and sisters. Speak out and add your voice by submitting a video by this evening to the June 25 Unity March, a historic Asian American-led, intersectional BIPOC mobilization bringing together 25,000+ Asian Americans, immigrants, and allies to Washington, DC. Learn more at unitymarch.com.

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The election of AG Rob Bonta could be the most important in California this year

CAPA21 is proud to endorse Rob Bonta and is contributing $5,000 in total for the primary. We expect to donate more to his campaign in the general. As an article in The Los Angeles Times points out, this could be the most important state-level race in California this year.

In Washington, Democrats hold the Senate with a tenuous 50-50 tie. In state legislatures and capitols across the country, right-wing politicians are pushing a regressive, backwards agenda that threatens our rights to privacy, to freedom from discrimination, to safe and legal abortion, and so much more. 

But thanks to AG Rob Bonta and his team, California leads the nation to defend against these hateful policies. As California’s chief law enforcement officer, Rob is the People’s Attorney — someone who ensures that justice is fairly served, regardless of a person’s race or economic status. 

The GOP would love nothing more than to STOP California’s progress and install a far-right Republican Attorney General this year. They’ve raked in millions to defeat Rob, but we can’t let them win.

CAPA21 is supporting a fundraiser for AG Bonta organized by the Filipino community on Wednesday, June 22, at Noon in Vallejo. See this flyer for more details or contact rsvp@sgrconsultants.com.

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Coming soon: More CAPA21 endorsements and contributions to organizations on the ground in key states

CAPA21 expects to announce the next wave of donations to more candidates and organizations following key primaries this month. Stay tuned!

The CAPA21 Asian Pacific American political action committee was proud to endorse and donate to Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal in her first run for Congress in 2016. We’re thrilled to again endorse her for re-election and invite you to meet Rep. Jayapal in Berkeley this weekend.

Rep. Jayapal will join Saru Jayaraman, President of One Fair Wage, at a fundraiser on Sunday, May 15, in Berkeley (location provided upon RSVP) at 1:00 p.m. co-hosted by CAPA21 co-chair Dale Minami, former CAPA21 leadership council co-chair Kiran Jain, our dear friend Vincent Eng, Dr. Karen Korematsu, Renuka Kher, Veena Dubal, Roy and Sara Bahat, and Aarti Kohli.

The event will feature a discussion with Rep. Jayapal and Ms. Jayaraman, who are together leading ballot measures in battleground states, including Michigan, that will raise wages and drive hundreds of thousands of low-wage workers and voters of color to the polls this November.

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Re-elected twice since 2016, Rep. Jayapal is serving her third term as the U.S. Representative for Washington’s 7th District, which encompasses most of Seattle and its surrounding areas.

Rep. Jayapal has been a leader on a wide range of landmark progressive issues. She is the Chair of the 96-member Congressional Progressive Caucus and also serves on the House Judiciary, Education & Labor, and Budget Committees. She also serves on the Select Committee for Economic Disparity and Fairness in Growth, a member of the Immigration Task Force for the Congressional Asian Pacific Asian Caucus, and a Vice Chair of the Congressional LGBTQ Equality Caucus where she is the co-chair of the Transgender Equality Task Force.

In Congress, she introduced the Medicare for All Act to guarantee health care as a human right, the Housing is a Human Right Act to invest billions into affordable housing, and the College for All Act to make public colleges and universities free for families making up to $125,000 while making community college and trade schools free for everyone.

Additionally, Congresswoman Jayapal has long been a champion for a $15 minimum wage, racial justice, the PRO Act to support workers’ rights, reproductive justice, the Domestic Workers Bill of Rights, and climate action so we finally transition to a 100% clean energy economy while prioritizing environmental justice and ensuring everyone has access to clean air, safe drinking water, and public lands.

Prior to becoming the first South Asian American woman ever elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, one of just two dozen naturalized citizens currently in Congress, and one of only 87 women of color to ever serve there, Congresswoman Jayapal spent decades working in global public health and development.

Born in India, Rep. Jayapal grew up in India, Indonesia, and Singapore before coming to the United States by herself at the age of 16. She attended college at Georgetown University and later received her MBA from Northwestern University before working in several industries in both the public and private sector. She is the author of two books, Pilgrimage to India: A Woman Revisits Her Homeland and Use the Power You Have: A Brown Woman’s Guide to Politics and Political Change.

She lives in West Seattle with her husband Steve Williamson, a long-time labor leader. She is also the proud mother of a transgender child named Janak and the stepmother to Michael.