Congratulations To AEF On A Wonderful Benefit Dinner

A judge and a community leader shared their thoughts on public service at AEF's benefit dinner last week.

‘Tis the season… for dinners to benefit worthy organizations. In recent weeks, I’ve had the pleasure of attending dinners for AABANY and LeGal. Last week, I had the privilege of emceeing the 22nd annual benefit dinner of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association Educational Fund (AEF), the non-profit established by APABA of D.C. to engage in charitable and educational activities. The dinner took place at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in downtown Washington.

Judge Paul Igasaki, Chair and Chief Judge of the Administrative Review Board at the U.S. Department of Labor, delivered an inspiring keynote address. He noted that, Better Call Saul notwithstanding, most of the lawyers he’s dealt with over the course of his long career have been honest, upstanding, and committed to their clients and the public interest.

Igasaki entered the legal profession because he enjoyed many benefits growing up, including a great education and economic security, and wanted to give back to society. His father was initially less than enthusiastic about Igasaki’s career choice, asking him, “When will you get a real job?” But Igasaki forged ahead, spending his early legal career representing poor clients in housing, domestic violence, and other matters.

Over time, Igasaki concluded that he wanted to focus on the “big picture” — not just helping clients with their specific cases, but bringing about broader social change through legislation and public policy. This led him to spend much of his career working with civil rights organizations, including the Asian Law Caucus; serving in several top positions at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; and participating in politics, at both the local and national level. He pointed out how Asian Americans are getting increasingly involved in public interest law and government, including judicial service, and encouraged attendees at the dinner to consider careers in public service.

Many of Judge Igasaki’s themes returned in the remarks of Sapna Pandya, executive director of Many Languages One Voice (MLOV), when she accepted AEF’s 2015 Community Service Award. She urged people in positions of power to ask themselves: who is missing from the discussion? Who is not being heard, and why not?

Pandya discussed the work of MLOV, which seeks to help people in the District of Columbia who do not speak English as their primary language. She stressed to the lawyers in the room that just having good laws on the books is not enough; the laws must be implemented effectively. She cited as an example the D.C. Language Access Act, which MLOV has worked to turn into a reality for the community. She told the moving story of a young Mandarin-speaking woman who struggled in school because she wasn’t receiving the language assistance to which she was entitled under law. That young woman ended up going before the D.C. City Council to argue in favor of reforms.

My thanks to AEF, both for inviting me to participate in a very special evening and for all the great work it does throughout the year.

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(Flip to the next page for additional pictures from the dinner.)

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