| AJPress photo by Robert Macabagdal
WITH Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) as the fastest-growing minority in Nevada and around the United States, Senator Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) encouraged the electorate to vote in the upcoming 2020 elections.
Rosen held a roundtable discussion with AAPI leaders in Las Vegas on Sunday, May 19 and answered questions regarding education, health care and immigration.
On college affordability, the senator said “we have to do something to address the student loan debt and allow people to refinance, reorganize or work it off with volunteer or community service.” She also added that new legislation would call on colleges and universities to take more action in the outcomes of the students so they are “mentored, guided through, that they graduate and that there is career placement for them.”
When asked about immigration backlogs, Rosen simply stated that Nevada residents need to vote and encourage others around the country to do so.
“Vote in 500 days because you’re not going to get one piece of legislation on the floor that’s going to make one…bit of difference with Mitch McConnell as the leader,” she said. “Mobilize and change the face of the United States Senate around this country.”
The senator’s meeting came after the grand reopening of the newly expanded Asian Community Development Council (ACDC) center.
“I’m pleased to see Senator Rosen taking action on the issues she spoke about in her maiden speech,” said Vida Lin, president and founder of the ACDC. “Education, health care, and immigration reform are all issues that have a real impact on the people in our community. I look forward to working with Senator Rosen to find solutions to the challenges we face.”
The AAPI community is considered the fastest-growing minority group in Nevada, with over 330,000 residents, according to a report from AAPI Data and APIA Vote. Filipino Americans are the largest Asian American ethnic group in the state with 162,936.
The Nevada senator also revealed that she signed on as a co-sponsor for the Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act, which was introduced on Wednesday, May 22 in both the Senate and House of Representatives.
“Any children of World War II veterans of Filipino descent don’t have to wait for any visas or immigration,” Rosen said. “They go straight to the front.”
This month, Rosen introduced the Cyber Ready Workforce Act, which would direct the Department of Labor to award grants to workforce intermediaries to support the creation, implementation, and expansion of registered apprenticeship programs in cybersecurity.
