EMILYs List Statement on Asian Pacific American Heritage Month
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, released a statement on the beginning of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.
“Asian Pacific American Heritage Month is an opportunity to celebrate the many contributions the AAPI community makes to our great nation,” said Stephanie Schriock, president of EMILYs List. “This year, the EMILYs List community awarded Helen Gym, the first Asian American woman to ever serve on the Philadelphia City Council, our prestigious Gabrielle Giffords Rising Star Award on May 3rd. Helen is a longtime community activist and public education advocate who has done incredible work to end the bullying and harassment of Asian American students in Philadelphia. She is an example of the kinds of leaders the AAPI community brings forth.”
“EMILYs List is also proud to have helped elect Sen. Mazie Hirono, the first AAPI woman in the U.S. Senate; and most recently Sens. Tammy Duckworth and Kamala Harris, the first Thai American in the Senate and the first Indian American in the Senate, respectively. Congresswomen Pramila Jayapal and Stephanie Murphy, another two of our candidates, also made history as the first Indian American woman and the first Vietnamese American woman elected to the U.S. House. We have helped elect 10 AAPI women to federal offices across the country and continue recruiting and growing the pipeline of AAPI leaders at the state and local level. EMILYs List is committed to making sure our halls of power reflect the diversity of our nation. ”
EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, has raised over $500 million to support pro-choice Democratic women candidates – making them one of the most successful political organizations ever. Our grassroots community of over five million members helps Democratic women wage competitive campaigns – and win. We recruit and train candidates, support strong campaigns, research the issues that impact women and families, and turn out women voters. Since our founding in 1985, we have trained nearly 10,000 women to run and helped elect 116 women to the House, 23 to the Senate, 12 governors, and over 800 to state and local office. Forty percent of the candidates EMILYs List has helped elect to Congress have been women of color – including every single Latina, African American, and Asian American Democratic congresswoman currently serving.
