Month: August 2019

American Pakistani Public Affairs Community was part of a massive celebration for Pakistan Independence Day Parade marking the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the country. The Parade took place in Hicksville, New York.

APPAC took part in the parade contributing to decorations with Pakistani and American flags, staging a special decorated float, and with APPAC membership. Congratulations to each one of you on Pakistan Independence Day!

The American Pakistani Public Affairs Committee plays a valuable role as a bridge between Pakistan and the United States, bringing them together. In this regard, the parade was a celebration and a reminder to Pakistani-American youth to make their contribution. Men, women and children came together in an impressive show of unity, representing their homeland in national dresses.

American Pakistani Public Affairs Committee (APPAC) truly believes that the road to success and prosperity is paved through with knowledge, education and information. With that belief in mind the APPAC launched its Educational Empowerment Assistance Program on June 27th, 2017. Within this Program we will: • Assist target groups to get access to free SAT preparation courses around the U.S. – please let us know whoever is interested in learning more about these opportunities; • Use those programs to increase educational opportunities and advancement of American Pakistani youth; • Inform and assist target groups of existing opportunities for educational grants and assistance. In early July APPAC is hosting its first series of educational opportunity seminars in Brooklyn NY to inform and explain more about new Excelsior Scholarship opportunity for free college and Enhanced Tuition Award programs in New York State. We are also partnering with existing organizations and resources which provide educational empowerment services and support to those who need such help and we can hook you up with such partners. We will be soon making announcements about the date, venue and logistics of this event. We are looking for volunteers to aid us with program tasks. If you are interested in learning more about our Educational Empowerment Program and what we have to offer, please let us know by reaching out to us by this Facebook page, our email – info@appac.co or give us a call at 1-877-62 APPAC.

The American Pakistani Public Affairs Committee (APPAC) recently helped to alleviate one of the most burdensome moments of American history. Back in May of 2017, three men were stabbed for their acts of kindness in defending teenagers on a Portland light-rail. Jeremy Joseph Christian, a 35-year-old convicted felon. is accused of fatally knifing three men who were trying to protect two African-American girls, one of whom was wearing a hijab, on a Portland light-rail train. Christian shouted ethnic and religious slurs at the two young women, the Portland Police Department said in a statement. The three men that intervened were stabbed by Christian. Ricky John Best, 53, died at the scene, while Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, 23, died at a hospital, police said. Micah David-Cole Fletcher of 21, who was another victim, remained in a local hospital with serious but non-life-threatening injuries, police said. The relatives of the victims were welcomed to the 9th annual scholarship dinner of the NYPD’s Muslim Officers Society at Terrace on the Park in Corona, Queens. During this dinner, the APPAC handed over $13,000 to the families of the Portland victims that was raised by the committee. We must respond to hate with love, to evil with good, as our faith instructs us, and send a powerful message of compassion through action. No amount of money will bring back the victims, but American Pakistani Public Affairs Committee (APPAC) does hope to lessen their burden in some way and show heartfelt appreciation for their heroic acts against Islamophobia and bigotry. APPAC condemns all forms of violence, hate crimes and bias attacks regardless of the religion, ethnic origin, language and place of residence of the perpetrators. We call on all members of our constituent communities to take note of, document and report to us such instances of hate crimes, bias attacks and individual cases of discrimination. History proves that the easiest position to take in such instances – staying indifferent and uninvolved is often the worst course of action or inaction we can take as a humanity.

On July 13th American Pakistani Public Affairs Committee hosted a Fundraising Event for Acting Deputy Attorney of Kings County Mr. Eric Gonzalez. The event was a huge success attracting a wide audience of supporters for Mr. Gonzalez from a variety of ethnic and racial groups living in Kings County. Mr. Gonzalez’s insight, enthusiasm, wise counsel and leadership have helped propel the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office to the forefront of criminal justice reform. He was sworn in as Acting District Attorney in October of 2016 after the passing of District Attorney Thompson. You can find out more about Mr. Gonzalez’s career and accomplishments on his webpage http://www.brooklynda.org/eric-gonzalez/ APPAC is truly committed to and supports democracy, transparency and diversity in politics. At the same time, APPAC truly believes that state and local victories provide the foundation for political movements by giving hope and momentum. Therefore, APPAC calls on fellow American Pakistani community members and broader American Muslim community members to get involved in local politics more actively. Local policies influence state policies, and state policies influence federal policies. We have a long history in the US of states and municipalities leading the way on issues from child labor to legal abortion, to women’s suffrage. Local and state politics give progressive senators and congressmen a concrete example to point to when trying to move similar legislation at the national level. While activism is important on the federal level, you can have a much bigger impact on the local and state level. State and local politicians represent far smaller constituencies and are easier to influence. In addition, many states are far more liberal than the US as a whole, for example New York State. These progressive states with democratic trifectas often lead the nation on many issues, but there are many areas where we can push ahead further. Please reach out to us for different, effective ways of getting involved more in the local and state politics and make a positive impact in your and your communities’ lives. For more information on APPAC mission and our latest actions, please visit our website www.appac.co and Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/APPAC2017/ With any inquiries please send us an email at info@appac.co or call us at 1-877-62 APPAC.