Asian Journal News Biden Administration

Biden administration honors AAPI educational institutions in first-ever proclamation

The president proclaimed Sept. 25-Oct 1 as National Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPSI) week Last week, President Joe Biden released a first-ever formal proclamation celebrating educational institutions that serve significant populations of low-income Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI). The Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISI) program was…

Biden-Marcos bilateral criticized as lip service to labor protections, human rights, security

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Cries of “Marcos is not welcome here!” filled the air in front of the White House as Filipino-Americans and supporters gathered at the nation’s capital to protest President Joe Biden’s bilateral meeting with Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos. Marcos, who was in the U.S. until May 4, and brought with him a large…

Biden administration rolls out ‘first- ever’ extensive AAPI advancement plan

The national multi-agency strategy is designed to better serve Asian American and Pacific Islander communities THE Biden administration this week unveiled a comprehensive plan that broadly assists federal government agencies and bureaus to better serve the vast Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities. The National Strategy to Advance Equity, Justice, and Opportunity for Asian…

Biden, Harris enter second year with mixed public opinion, lukewarm social progress

White House AANHPI representatives celebrate diversity despite low approval ratings for current admin ONE year ago, on Jan. 20, 2021, when President Joseph R. Biden and Vice President Kamala D. Harris were sworn into office, they inherited a host of national problems. The Biden administration effectively took over the largely lackluster coronavirus response from the…

Duterte thanks Biden for COVID-19 vaccine donations during ASEAN meet

PHILIPPINE President Rodrigo Duterte has personally thanked United States President Joe Biden for America’s COVID-19 vaccine donations. The chief executive was able to express his gratitude during a high-level discussion at the virtual 9th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-U.S. Summit held Tuesday, October 26. “Your Majesty, Excellencies, the COVID-19 pandemic has brought complicated challenges…

Biden marks Fil-Am History Month honoring frontline workers, community’s contributions to the US

PRESIDENT Joe Biden marked the start of October as Filipino American History Month by honoring the Fil-Am community’s contributions to the United States, especially amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. “Filipinos have continued to serve and sacrifice in one of the darkest years in our history, selflessly working on the widespread frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic,”…

AAPI leaders meet Biden, Harris at White House to discuss hate crimes, voting rights

UNITED States President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday, August 5 met with Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) leaders to discuss key issues affecting the fastest-growing electorate in the country. Biden and Harris’s meeting with community leaders — which some AAPI Democrats believe is overdue given the rise in anti-Asian discrimination…

Biden extends condolences to the PH, says Aquino’s legacy ‘will endure for years to come’

UNITED States President Joe Biden has extended his “deepest condolences” to the Philippines following the death of former President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III. In a statement released by the White House on Thursday, June 24, Biden called Aquino a “valued friend and partner” to the U.S. “He will long be remembered for serving his country…

Biden celebrates 123rd PH Independence Day: Filipinos ‘make invaluable contributions to communities all across our country’

UNITED STATES President Joe Biden joined Filipinos in celebrating the Philippines’ 123rd Independence Day in a video message over the weekend. In his first Philippine Independence Day message as the U.S. commander-in-chief, Biden cited the enduring friendship between American and the Philippines, adding that the two nations must continue working together to address challenges like…

US to donate vaccines to PH, other countries

THE United States has announced that it will donate 7 million of its surplus COVID-19 vaccine doses to the Philippines and other Asian countries. In an effort to end the pandemic globally, the administration of U.S. President Joe Biden said 80 million vaccine doses will be distributed to various countries by the end of June…

Biden signs executive order to establish White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders

President Joe Biden signed an executive order establishing the White House Initiative on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPI) on Friday, May 28 as AANHPI Heritage Month comes to a close. The initiative — which is intended to advance equity, justice, and opportunity for the AANHPI communities — will prioritize the response to the…

Biden signs anti-Asian hate crimes bill into law 

President Joe Biden signed legislation on Thursday, May 20 seeking to address anti-Asian hate crimes that have risen since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The signing came two days after the House of Representatives passed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, a bill introduced by Rep. Grace Meng (D-N.Y.) and Senator Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), in…

Biden urges House to pass bill expediting review of anti-Asian hate crimes 

President touts pandemic recovery, reforms in first 100 days DURING his first address to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday, April 28, President Joe Biden called on the House of Representatives to pass the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act approved by the Senate last week. Biden thanked the Senate, which showed bipartisan support with a…

Biden nominates Fil-Am veteran Gina Ortiz Jones as Air Force undersecretary

GINA Ortiz Jones, a Filipina American Iraq War veteran who ran for U.S. Congress twice, will be President Joe Biden’s nominee for undersecretary of the Air Force. Jones, who is openly gay, is tapped to be the No. 2 in command in the military branch where she served as an intelligence officer during the “Don’t…

AAPI lawmakers meet with Biden, Harris to double down on solutions to combat anti-Asian violence

PRESIDENT Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris met with members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus on Thursday, April 15 in the wake of recent anti-Asian attacks and other issues facing the community during the pandemic. The meeting at the White House came nearly a month after shootings at three Atlanta-area spas that…

[OPINION] Enough of the wars! Let’s welcome our troops back home from Afghanistan on September 11, 2021

EVERY TIME we watch funerals and burials of our fallen soldiers, every time we see and hear the pain, the anguish, the indescribable sense of loss in the eyes and the tears and the trembling voice of their bereaved spouse, children, parents, friends and comrades, we cannot help but break down inside. After all, these…

White House reveals new actions to address hate, racism against Asian Americans

The White House on Tuesday, March 30 announced several actions in response to the latest string of anti-Asian violence and racism in the United States. The move comes two weeks since the Atlanta mass shooting that left eight individuals dead, six of whom were Asian women, and as nearly 3,800 hate incidents have been reported…

‘Words have consequences’: Biden, Harris meet with Asian American leaders, denounce violence following Atlanta attacks

UNITED States President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris met with Asian American leaders in Atlanta on Friday, March 19, three days after eight people, including six Asian women, were fatally shot at three spas in the area. “Racism is real in America and it has always been. Xenophobia is real in America, and…

AAPI Democrats endorse Fil-Am Nani Coloretti to lead Office of Management and Budget

Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Democratic leaders are urging President Joe Biden to nominate Filipina American Nani Coloretti to lead the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) amid concerns over the lack of AAPI representation in his Cabinet. This comes after controversial pick Neera Tanden, who is Indian American, withdrew her nomination as budget…

‘It’s un-American’: Biden denounces violent attacks against Asian Americans in first primetime address

IN his first primetime address marking the one-year anniversary of the coronavirus pandemic, U.S. President Joe Biden condemned the “vicious” and “un-American” attacks on Asian Americans. Speaking to the nation from the White House on Thursday, March 11, Biden acknowledged the divisiveness deepened during the pandemic, from refusals to wear masks to hate incidents and…

Biden signs landmark COVID-19 relief bill, addresses ‘war footing’ approach to beating COVID-19

All American adults to be eligible for vaccines by May 1  Hours after President Joe Biden signed his massive $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill on Thursday, March 11, he delivered his first primetime address unpacking the toll of the COVID-19 pandemic and declared what he called a “war footing” approach to beating the virus. Nearly…

Biden signs $1.9T COVID-19 relief bill, sending $1,400 checks, vaccine aid

ONE day after Congress approved his coronavirus relief bill, President Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion pandemic aid package on Thursday, March 11, marking a crucial political victory for Biden and the Democrats. Among the measures of the bill — dubbed the American Rescue Plan — includes much anticipated $1,400 stimulus checks that will be…

What Biden’s US Citizenship Act of 2021 will do for family immigration

WHEN Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey and Rep. Linda Sanchez of California first introduced the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021 in Congress on Feb. 18, the general consensus among immigration activists was mixed. Some criticized the bill — which largely calls for reviews and not immediate repeals of the immigration policies of former…

After House approval, US Senate prepares to take up $1.9 trillion bill later this week

AMERICANS may be closer to receiving the long-awaited first COVID-19 stimulus checks of the new administration as the U.S. Senate moves forward on making a decision on President Joe Biden’s sweeping COVID-19 bill, which includes $1,400 direct payments to most American taxpayers. The House of Representatives passed the $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package — dubbed…

US tops 500K COVID deaths

HALF a million people in the United States have lost their lives to the novel coronavirus. According to a Reuters tally of public health data, the country logged more than 28 million COVID-19 cases and 500,264 fatalities on Monday, February 22. The grim number of deaths “matches the number of Americans killed in World War…

Biden, Democrats’ immigration reform bill: A slow start toward pro-immigrant policy, experts say

IMMIGRATION reform, a term that has become synonymous with political gridlock and ideological barriers to entry, may finally be on the horizon after decades of unsuccessful attempts from both Democrats and Republicans. White House officials confirmed that President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats are expected to release a sweeping immigration reform bill this week. The…

Mass vaccination site opens at Cal State LA

Part of Biden administration’s vaccine goal in first 100 days A COVID-19 mass vaccination site under the Biden administration’s partnership with the state is now open at California State University, Los Angeles. The site in East LA opened on Tuesday, February 16 as one of two in the Golden State and the first of 100…

Indian Fil-Am millennial joins VP Harris’ team as policy advisor

As the Biden-Harris administration pledges diverse staffing to reflect the country, several individuals of Filipino descent have been named to key roles to help shape policies across the federal government. The latest Filipino American to join the new leadership is Michael George, who has dedicated his career examining how policy can improve social mobility and reduce…

Biden signs executive order eliminating Trump-era barriers to legal immigration

UNITED States President Joe Biden signed a trio of executive orders on Tuesday, Feb. 2 that aim to undo former President Donald Trump’s hard-line immigration policies, including addressing family separation at the U.S.-Mexico border, reforming the asylum program and reviewing the “barriers” that the Trump administration placed around legal immigration. “We are going to work…

Biden signs executive order denouncing anti-Asian racism, hate amid COVID

PRESIDENT Joe Biden signed four executive orders on Tuesday, January 26 aimed at pushing racial equity, including one to combat xenophobia and racism against Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs), which has heightened during the COVID-19 pandemic. “I firmly believe the nation is ready to change but government has to change as well. We need…