Public Employee Press

DC 37 celebrates diversity
Asian Heritage

By GREGORY N. HEIRES

Members and guests gathered at union headquarters May 16 to celebrate Asian Heritage Month.

The program featured cultural presentations, a dinner and speakers, who reflected on the contributions of Asians to U.S. culture and history.

DC 37 Asian Heritage Committee Chair Maf Misbah Uddin welcomed the audience by noting that the union's Asian community this year marks two decades of organizing to increase its visibility at the union. He thanked the committee members for their hard work and dedication.

Describing the Asian contribution to U.S. culture as "outstanding" in his welcoming message, Uddin, who is DC 37 treasurer and Local 1407 president, said, "Asian Americans have continuously excelled in mathematics, science, computers, sports and the arts. The Asian traditions of sacrifice, hard work, discipline and respect for family and religious values have greatly enriched every community in which we live."

"One Union Celebrating Many Cultures" was the theme of event, which Local 420 member Indira Seenauth-Fraser and Local 375 Recording Secretary Leela Meret emceed with assistance from Committee Co-Chair Virginia Wong.

In his remarks, DC 37 Associate Director Henry Garrido championed the country's diversity. But he said our diversity will never truly be appreciated until different ethnic groups get over the communications barriers that often prevent them from finding common ground. For instance, he said, the country's "broken" immigration system is a sorry consequence of the inability of politicians to strike a compromise through constructive dialog. Honorees included Assembly member Ron Kim, Maryland Asian Affairs Commissioner Anis Ahmed and Chief Tomas Chan of the New York Police Dept.

The keynote speaker was Bill Chong, commissioner of the Dept. of Youth and Community Development. A long-time city resident, Chong reflected upon the progress and growing acceptance of Asians and other immigrants in the city.

Today, it is much more common for people of different backgrounds to live in the same neighborhoods, he noted.

The civil service system has opened up employment avenues for immigrants. And over the years, the city has abandoned policies - such as not recognizing the degrees of foreign universities - that once impeded the progress of immigrants who are professional workers, said Chong.

The performers included the Shorolipi Cultural Group (Banglasdeshi dance); Angela Lai, Emma Lu and Sonia Garland ("Thai" Chinese dance); the Ichifuji_Kai Dance Association (Japanese dance) and the Ling Sing Manhattan Music Group (Indonesian song and dance).