Against Impossible Odds, We Fought and Won

To the brave AsAm, particularly Ch-Am, fighters, 80-20 salutes
you! Against impossible odds, YOU responded to 80-20's clarion call
to "rise and act." YOU provided great local leadership. 80-20 assisted
with its political know-how. TOGETHER, we won.

 

   Thanks to you, there are much superlative press attention & praise
for you & 80-20 Initiative in the last few days. Against impossible odds, in
a legislative battle where the Dem Party has a 2/3 majority in both the
Senate and the Assembly, we induced the Speaker of the Assembly to kill
the Senate California Constitutional Amendment 5 (SCA 5). SCA 5 aimed
to re-introduce "race conscious" college admissions to CA which severely
hurts AsAm students. 

   Seasoned political reporters in prestigious major media said the
following about 80-20.

 

      1) Economist:    Not black and white .   By Tom Nuttall.
[Note: Economist is an prestigious international weekly, published in
London, England. The author is Tom Nuttall, Economist's west coast
correspondent. He was an editor at the European Council on Foreign
Relations. So he certainly knows politics, and knows how to judge
the effectiveness of political organizations.] 

"THE 80-20 Initiative, an Asian-American lobby group, scored its first big
success last October when it forced Jimmy Kimmel, a television host, to
apologize for allowing a five-year-old boy to suggest on air that America
should kill everyone in China in order to avoid its debt obligations. This
week the group pulled off a more edifying win, defeating an attempt to
allow Californian universities to take account of race when deciding whom
to admit. 

"California's Democrats have long chafed against Proposition 209, . . . .
whizzed through the state Senate. It seemed likely to pass in the lower
house, too. California's voters, a more mixed bunch these days, may well
have supported it. 

"And so after the Senate vote the 80-20 Initiative urged its 350,000
e-mail subscribers to press Asian-American legislators to scrap SCA 5.
Energetic and bottom-up, the ensuing campaign had a Tea-Party whiff to
it. And it worked: their phones ringing off the hook, several Asian-
American Democrats decided that ethnic allegiances trumped partisan
ones and withheld support for the bill. On March 17th John Perez, the
Assembly Speaker, withdrew it from consideration. . . . 

Asian-Americans have low voting rates and are not noted for political
activism. Could this debate change that? S.B. Woo, 80-20's co-founder,
likes to think so. It is time for Asians to acquire the political sophistication
of whites, he argues; they should harass Asian politicians who fail their
constituents, and should be willing to play the parties off against each 604b
other." 

   "Economist" is NOT the only media that is reporting our impact
on this legislative reversal. See below. Many more are NOT listed. 

      2) Southern California Public Radio: SCA 5: A political
coming-of-age story for Chinese-Americans

 

      3) Sacramento Bee: California lawmakers shelve effort to
bring back affirmative action

 

      4) SF Chronicle: Political fight is brewing on race-based
preferences

 

      5) The Nation: How Insurgent Asian Americans Groups
Helped Republicans Kill Affirmative Action in California

 

      6) California Magazine, UC Berkeley Alumni Quarterly: Stunned
Legislature Halts Move to Diversify Colleges Amid Asian
American Backlash

 

   Frankly & honestly, 80-20 got too much credit, because the real credit
should go to YOU!!! 

   On the other hand, was 80-20's clarion call needed? Did its political courage
and know-how provide the hope & direction? If so, then donate to SELF by
clicking here . 

   A community, as financially well-to-do and politically immature as ours,
should at lest support one political organization that has a splendid record.
If 80-20's SELF project fail to reach $1 million/yr for 5 years in another
15 months, every penny you've donated will be refunded in full. Subsequently,
80-20 will likely demise at the end of 2016.

 

   Is self-empowerment permanently much much more important than a
victory in SCA 5?  The CHOICE IS YOURS. 

Respectfully,

S. B. Woo, a volunteer
President, 80-20 National AsAm PAC, inc.

Q&A on SCA5

1. Q: Who killed SCA 5?
    A: YOU DID. The AsAms in CA, especially the ChAms, did.

   The pro-Democratic newspapers would have you believe that SCA 5
was killed by the 3 ChAm senators, who have repented, or the Democratic
leadership. The die-hard Republicans will have you believe that the
Republican leadership helped killed SCA 5. The truth is that YOU Killed
SCA 5, because both parties were forced by the reality of the upcoming
elections to help the AsAm community kill SCA 5 - Ds want to avoid a
disaster during the next elections & Rs want to defeat a few incumbent Ds.

2.  Q: What can we conclude?
     A: We have the POWER to defend ourselves, when we work together & follow
     good political advice. The politicians are weak before a united and
     well-led AsAm community.

3.  Q: How do we consolidate our SELF empowerment?
     A: 4 easy key steps:
(1) We must REGISTER to vote and actually vote. See a list of orgs.*which
     have joined 80-20 for a great campaign to register more voters.
(2) We need to pass a strong message to all AsAm politicians who have
     been negligent in defending our rightful interests. So 80-20
     recommends UN-electing
     (a) Paul Fong who'll be term limited out as an Assemblyman and
     will be running for City Council 1 in San Jose, and
     (b) Leland Yee who is also term limited out as a Senator and will be
     running for Secretary of State of CA.

       Ted Lieu has helped 80-20 stop SCA 5 in many ways. He also
     stated publicly: "I will vote against SCA 5 if and when it comes
     back to the Senate and any amendment in any form that continues to
     seek race conscious admissions." We recommend that you give him
     due consideration in his Congressional campaign. Carol Liu's attitude
     in SCA 5 is very questionable, but she is NOT running this year.
(3) Respect all communities of all races.
(4) Don't blame Sen. Hermandez for proposing SCA 5. He is working for
     the interests of his constituents as an elected official should. If all AsAm
     elected officials will be as dutiful to AsAm interest as Sen. Hermandez is
     to Hispanics' interests, AsAms will be doing great.

4.  Q: Does defeating SCA 5 benefit AsAms nationally?
     A: Yes! See how the international & national media now show respect to
     AsAms, and to 80-20 Initiatives. In the last 3 days, Woo, Pres. of
     80-20 Initiative has 8 interview requests. Click on the blue words
     to see the articles.

1. Economist, a weekly paper published in London, England
2. Southern California Public Radio
3. LA Times
4. San Francisco Chronicle
5. Sacramento Bee
6. The Nation
7. California Magazine, UC Berkeley Alumni Quarterly
8. Pasadena Star-News
9. 80-20 was also mentioned in a blog.

   TOGETHER, we shall overcome.

Respectfully,

S. B. Woo, a volunteer
President, 80-20 National Asian Am. Political Action Committee

* 80-20 is honored to be working with these orgs to register AsAms:
         Silicon Valley Chinese Association (SVCA)
         CivilRights WeChat 
         San Diego Asian American for Equality (SDAAFE)
         Chinese United League   

Join this great campaign, if you are not afraid of work.

 

SCA5 DEAD! EASIEST way to empower yourself

   "SCA 5 IS DEAD" - a quote from 80-20's e-mail to you 4 days ago. Yesterday,
its death was formalized by Assembly Speaker Perez. He referred SCA 5 back
to the CA Senate. Could it come back 2 years from now? Quite likely!

 

         EMPOWER YOURSELF so that it'll never comeback!

             Register to vote! Here is the EASIEST way.

   If you reside in CA, having registered will enable you to vote against
SCA 5 if necessary. See how the CA Democratic politicians responded to your
protests? If many of us register as Republican voters today, they'll really
get your message. They'll never touch SCA 5 again!

   Nationally, in 2008, only 2.5 of the 6 million eligible AsAms voted.
Imagine if all 6 million had voted and that they are known to ALWAYS
vote in presidential PRIMARIES, like the Jewish. We will be
equal citizens of he US, without batting an eyelash. In America, the
best way to help make immigrants equal citizens is through the political
process -- voting power under expert political guidance.

        Below is for US citizens who have NOT registered
      to vote, or have moved to a new address. Otherwise,
      this email doesn't concern you.

 

Here is the EASIEST WAY to register to vote! Takes 10 minutes or less.

   Click on https://ssl.capwiz.com/congressorg/nvra/ , you'll see a map. Click
on your state. That leads you to a form. Fill out the form. Click on the
download button firmly, print, SIGN & DATE, and mail in your application
form. You can use you own envelope, if you find it more convenient.

   Your state, upon receiving your application, will mail you a "voter
registration card." YOU NEED TO FILL THAT OUT AND MAIL IT IN. Only
then will you be registered. Note that registering to vote is ALWAYS A TWO-
STEP PROCESS, whether you register via a website or go to a registration

site in person.

   GO TO: https://ssl.capwiz.com/congressorg/nvra/ NOW! Take 10 minutes
only!!! Be a voter for your children's and grand-children's sake.

   When the "Voter Registration Card" comes, you may want to choose to
vote by absentee PERMANENTLY. That is you VOTE BY MAIL instead of going
to a polling place. It is again the easiest way!!! Forward this e-mail to
your friends. 

   EMPOWER YOURSELF -- 80-20's fondest dream! Register NOW!

Thanks.

SB, a volunteer

UPDATING 80-20’s “Call To Action” on SCA 5

 CONGRATULATIONS & THANKS to many organizations & individuals
who rose and acted against SCA5: Silicon Valley Chinese Association
(SVCA), United Asian American for Activism (UAAFA), the Backbone
Foundation, the Civil Rights WeChat Group, San Diego Asian American for
Equability, Assemblyman Ed Chau, and many others.

   Thanks to you, great progress was made toward the 2 goals for which
80-20 issued a CALL TO ACTION about 20 days ago.

              The 2 Goals stated in 80-20's "Call To Action"

 

Goal 1: Stop SCA 5 - an immediate need.
 

Goal 2: Make Asian Am elected officials accountable to our rightful
       interests. That will EMPOWER our community permanently.

                             

                       Updating our Progress

 

Goal 1: SCA 5 is dead. All who understand politics know that. The
       Republican Party is exploiting the SCA 5 issue in hopes of
       defeating Dem. candidates in the coming June 3 Primary and Nov.
       4 General Election. The Dem Party is scared; and wants to get rid
       of SCA 5 ASAP to avoid a disaster in this year's elections. What
       should we do? Using one political party to scare the other for its
       hurtful act against us is in the BEST democratic tradition. Keep
       on using this tactics!

Goal 2: Will we get rid of SCA 5 permanently? NO! Unless we work to
       truly empower ourselves - register more AsAm voters to increase
       our voter-share in CA from the current 8% to 10%.

      

       To scare the Democratic Party, we should register as Republicans. If
       10,000 more AsAms register as Republicans than Democrats
       before June 3, both parties will compete to serve our rightful
       interests. Officials from both parties SHALL become our public
       servants. (Note: You can vote Democrat as a registered Republican. 80-
       20 will like the privilege of making a recommendation to you
       when the elections occur.)

       To truly empower ourselves, we need to PUNISH 2 AsAm elected
       officials, one Dem senator and one assemblyman, for their failure
       to defend our interests during this SCA 5 episode. 80-20 will
       advise, when the time comes. 

                             How to Rise & Act

 

(1) Want to help to REGISTER Asian Ams to vote? Email me via
    sbw@udel.edu. We'll announce the participants; report the number of
    AsAms who have been registered, broken down to Ds, Rs & Unaffiliated.
    A cash prize of $1,000 shall honor the AsAm org. having registered
    the largest number of AsAms by Oct. 21, 2014 (Tuesday).

(2) Focus on

   

   ( a) Assemblyman Paul Fong of the 28th District (Campbell), who will
    be term-limited out. He'll run for City Council 1, San Jose. He has
    been very reluctant to help his own people.

   

   (b) Assemblyman Bob Wieckowski of the 25th district (Fremont)
    which has 49.6% AsAm voters. Kansen Chu has just declared to
    run for his seat.

                     If you Appreciated 80-20's work, 

please donate to 80-20 Educational Foundation's SELF project, which is
tax deductible. Acting is important! Click on 

           http://admin.80-20nj.info/cgi/80/e?l=8/au/1/f&w=no

Respectfully,

S. B. Woo, a volunteer
President, 80-20 Initiative.

PS:                 FORWARD this email please.

Why Do Asian American Politicians Work Against Us?

                             IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENTS: 

(a) SCA 5 has NOT been stopped yet. Let's all focus on Assemblyman Paul Fong.
  Phone 916 319-2028 or email Assemblymember.fong@assembly.ca.gov,
  & ask him to vote NO on SCA 5. If he agrees, SCA 5 will be dead. 

(b) Good News: Ted Lieu, 1 of the 3 senators who voted for SCA 5, PROMISED in
  writing to 80-20 President S.B. Woo that "I will vote against SCA 5 if and
  when it comes back to the Senate and any amendment in any form that
  continues to seek race conscious admissions." A good solid promises.

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                      The Norm Of American Democracy:

   US senators and congresspersons are almost all for abolishing obsolete
military bases. They almost all have one EXCEPTION – not the ones in their
own states or districts!

                           80-20 Is Extremely Alarmed

   Elected officials, especially those whose terms are 2 instead of 4 or 6 years,
are to mostly serve the interests of those who elect them*, even when such
interests are against those of the state or nation. 80-20 is extremely
alarmed when so many AsAm/ChAm officials go out of their ways to
ACT against our interests! Here are examples.

Elaine Chao, Republican Secretary of Labor under President Bush,
  set a shameful example. As the Labor Secretary, she is explicitly
  charged by Executive Order 11246 to make sure that ALL Americans enjoy
  equal opportunity to be employed and to rise as high as their ability and
  ambition will take them. However, she did NOT apply the law for AsAms to
  help break the glass ceiling against us!

  True, the earlier labor secretaries didn't do that either. But time was ripe
  under Elaine Chao's tenure. To illustrate, Obama's DOL promised 80-20 in writing
  to enforce it, though action was still rare. We hope Chris Lu, Dep. Sec. of Labor if
  confirmed by the Senate, will do much much better,

Judy Chu, a Democratic Congresswoman from Monterey Park, whose district
  has ample AsAm voters, wasn't much better. When she was invited by New York
  Times to write an op-ed on how Danny Chen, a soldier, was racially hazed
  to death by his superior officers, she pretended that it was just ordinary
  hazing. The word "race" never appeared in her entire article. How
  disappointing! If one doesn't have the guts to speak up for us, then don't
  run for an office.

Paul Fong, a Dem. & an Assemblyman from CA's 29th District with 28% AsAm
  voters, did an unconscionable thing. He proposed banning shark fin in CA in
  2011, without giving the AsAms in CA adequate time to adjust to such a ban.
  For what? Saving sharks' lives? Note that the US senators from tobacco-producing
  states, gave their constituents decades to adjust, even when smoking caused
  human lives. .

Ted Lieu, Carol Liu and Leland Yee, all Dems, all CA ChAm senators, all voted
  for SCA 5, a constitutional amendment aiming to turn CA back to "race-
  conscious" college admissions. It aims to reduce the number of AsAm students
  in favor of less qualified applicants of other races.

  True, the % of black and Hispanic student are below their population %.
  However, a quota system based on population is ILLEGAL in the USA.

              Why Do AsAm/ChAm Politicians Vote Against Us?

   We, OURSELVES, are mostly at fault. Here are 2 examples:

(1) A huge % of AsAms/ChAms worship officials, implicitly assume that
officials must be scholars of the highest quality and should be listened to
and respected like our parents. We've been spoiling our officials. I
personally experienced the spoiling nationwide, when I was a lowly Lt. Governor of
Delaware.

   Our degree of worship is decided by the ranks of the officials. The higher
the ranks, the more we worship. No wonder, the AsAm/ChAm officials try so
hard to seek higher offices, at the expense of serving our rightful interests.

(2) We are inexplicably fearful of standing up to elected officials. We also
please & flatter them hoping to get some personal favors back. A picture
with them and their presence in our children's weddings perhaps? We
live in America, STUPID!

                       The Proper Way to Deal with All Officials

   Officials are our public SERVANTS. So treat them that way. When they serve
us well in PUBLIC matters, REWARD them with our donations and votes.
When otherwise, PUNISH them!

   80-20 aims to EMPOWER YOU!

Respectfully,

S.B. Woo, a volunteer
President, 80-20 National Asian Am. Political Action Committee
 

*Former President John F. Kennedy wrote a Pulitzer-winning book, entitled
"Profiles of Courage" praising those statesmen, who during the period leading
to US Civil War, were willing to sacrifice their political careers, to vote against
their constituents' interest in order to save the Union. The above should
illustrate to us, how elected officials in the US are normally expected to act.

PS: Click here to see a video tape here about a demonstration in LA against SCA
5. However, Ed Chau had ALREADY announced that he would not vote for SCA 5
BEFORE the demonstration. As misguided as the demo was, 80-20 is
glad to see it. (Please be patient with an annoying 15 sec. ad at the beginning.)

中文翻译：http://www.80-20initiative.net/news/20140304.pdf