Is this Our Truth, Justice, and the American Way?

Hate incidents against Asian Americans continue to surge, but are they receiving the attention they deserve? The invisibility of anti-Asian racism is a reflection of the invisibility of Asians in the American imagination: according to a recent national survey, 58% of Americans cannot name a single prominent Asian American, and 42% cannot think of a historical experience or legislative policy related to Asian Americans. Asian Americans also remain invisible in our school curricula: only last year, Illinois became the first state to require that Asian American history be taught in public schools, and this year, New Jersey became the second. How can we possibly understand the present moment of anti-Asian violence if we fail to understand and confront the past?  

Please join us for a conversation about the state of hate of Asian America with our distinguished guests: Chinatown activist Rev. Norman Fong, City Attorney David Chiu, and Hammad Alam of the Asian Law Caucus. The conversation will be moderated by Grace Cathedral Congregation Council member Lisa S. Wong.  

The Forum will be posted on our Youtube channel for viewing on demand.    

Watch

Rev. Norman Fong’s Life of Activism in San Francisco’s Chinatown 

About the Guests

David Chiu is the 15th City Attorney of San Francisco. One of the country’s top public law offices, the 300-person City Attorney’s Office provides legal counsel to the Mayor, Board of Supervisors and over 100 departments, boards, commissions and offices that comprise San Francisco’s government. David is the first Asian American to serve as San Francisco City Attorney, the first Asian to represent eastern San Francisco in the California State Assembly, and the first Asian to serve as President of San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors and to represent San Francisco’s Chinatown. During his 7 years in the Legislature, David authored 76 laws addressing a wide spectrum of issues, including housing, homelessness, transportation, education, environment, clean energy, health, public safety, and civil rights. He served as Assistant Speaker pro Tempore and Chair of the Assembly Housing & Community Development Committee.  As Chair of the California API Legislative Caucus, he helped deliver a record state budget investment of $156 million to combat anti-Asian hate. The son of immigrant parents, David grew up in Boston and received his undergraduate, law, and master’s in public policy degrees from Harvard University. 

The Rev. Norman Fong is the Parish Associate of the Presbyterian Church in Chinatown, which is the oldest API Church in America. He was ordained as a Presbyterian Minister and has been serving his home church since 1981. He has also worked from1990 to 2023 for the Chinatown Community Development Center, including serving as its Executive Director (and since 2020 as its “Community Ambassador”).  

Born and raised in Chinatown, he continues to serve his home base doing justice and loving kindness, which is his lifelong commitment. Norman (little Dragon) is also the recipient of the White House Champion of Change award during the Obama administration. Currently, he also is part of the Coalition for Community Safety & Justice (CCSJ) serving API victims of hate crimes in San Francisco. 

Hammad Alam is a Staff Attorney and the National Security and Civil Rights (NSCR) Program Manager at the Asian Law Caucus. ALC’s NSCR program provides legal support to and advocates for the civil rights and liberties of Bay Area communities most vulnerable to the government’s national security and counterterrorism policing infrastructure, including Arab, Middle Eastern, Muslim and South Asian communities, Chinese and Chinese American communities and other targeted groups. In addition to direct legal representations, Hammad drives ALC’s work challenging exclusionary immigration policies justified under national security rationales, including addressing the ongoing harms of the Muslim Ban and emerging exclusionary policies targeting Chinese and East Asian immigrants under the guise of “economic competition” and “technology espionage.” Hammad began his career as a federal court litigator, later serving as a law clerk in the Eastern District of California and as an Equal Justice Works Fellow at AJSOCAL. Hammad approaches his work and his clients through his previous training as a chaplain while a student at Harvard Divinity School, from where he obtained a Masters in Theological Studies in addition to his JD from UCLA School of Law.

About the Moderator 

Lisa is a second-generation San Franciscan and has lived in the city all of her life. Recently, she has served as the President of the Congregation Council and as an ex-officio board trustee of Grace Cathedral. Lisa was also the lead of the Council’s Social Justice Subcommittee. She has written blogs against anti-Asian racism, marched to raise awareness about anti-Asian hate and violence, and has also advocated for Bystander Training for our youth, families, congregation, and staff to learn the tools to help deescalate racial harassment and abuse. Lisa attended Lowell High School and went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in business management from San Francisco State University. About a year after the birth of her daughter, Lisa returned to her studies and earned another Bachelor of Science degree in nursing from Samuel Merritt University. Currently, she works at Genentech in Research and Early Clinical Development as an administrator. Genentech makes fundamental scientific discoveries and develops them into best-in-class therapeutics.   

About The Forum

The Forum is a series of stimulating conversations about faith and ethics in relation to the important issues of our day. We invite inspiring and illustrious people to sit down for a real conversation with the Forum’s host and with you. Our guests range from artists, inventors and philosophers to pop culturists and elected officials, but the point of The Forum is singular: civil, sophisticated discourse that engages minds and hearts to think in new ways about the world.  More about Grace Forum Online

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