Photo from Sen. Mazie Hirono via Wikimedia Creative Commons
A coalition of Asian American Pacific Islander groups expressed fears today that President-elect Joe Biden will not nominate any AAPIs for Cabinet Secretary.
The National Council of Asian American Pacific Americans says this would be the first time in over 20 years that a president has failed to nominate a single Cabinet Secretary from the community.
“We recognize that President-Elect Biden’s leadership team will have a number of historic firsts. This includes Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris, the recent nomination of Katherine Tai for U.S. Trade Representative, and Neera Tanden for Director of the Office of Management and Budget,” the group acknowledged. “However, the notable absence of Asian American Cabinet Secretaries to lead some of the most important agencies in the country would undercut his record on inclusion in stark terms.”
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NCAPA pointed out a Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander has never been nominated for a cabinet role and urged the President-Elect to correct that. They reminded Biden that he promised to appoint a team that reflected America.
“Over the past few weeks, members of Congress and AAPI organizations have recommended immensely qualified candidates, yet with each Cabinet Secretary announcement, Asian Americans continue to be ignored and brushed aside,” said Madalene Xuan-Trang Mielke, President and CEO of the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies. “If President-Elect Biden is indeed to keep his campaign promise of elevating AAPIs, this must change.”
One candidate put forward by the group is California Labor Secretary Julie Su for US Labor Secretary. Su throughout her career has taken a strong stand against sweat shops and improving the lives of immigrant workers while protecting them from exploitation. At the age of 26, she successfully advocated for Thai workers who were held as slaves in a sweatshop outside Los Angeles, according to the Business Insider.
“AAPI voters played a critical role this election, we saw record-turnout in the early vote alone, and there is no doubt that each vote was cast in the hopes of having their voice heard and represented,” said Christine Chen of APIA Vote. “I urge President-elect Biden to make sure the contributions of his AAPI voter-base are respected by ensuring he selects an inclusive Cabinet on the executive level.”
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Didn’t he nominate someone for Trade? I just heard he speak tonight. She is Chinese American. He was picking his cabinet.
Yes, you are correct. The article mentions that. However, that is not a Cabinet Level position.