Immigration, Injustice and Asian American Women

WASHINGTON, DC (PR) — The National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) released breaking data in its latest report, “Turning the Page on U.S. Immigration Policy: Immigration and Asian American Women and Families.” This report highlights the experiences and needs of the Asian American community, which is caught up in an outdated and unjust immigration system.

“Behind these statistics are the lived experiences of millions of women suffering under a broken immigration system, making the clear and compelling case: Immigrant justice is central to women’s equality,” said Miriam Yeung, Executive Director of NAPAWF.

Key findings include:

o> 75 percent of all U.S. immigrants are women and children.

o> Over 1.3 million of the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. are of Asian descent.

o> More than 1.6 million of the 4.4 million waiting in the visa backlogs are in Asia, with many waiting more than 20 years to reunite with their families.

The report uses real-life stories, demographics, and issues analyses to illustrate the impacts of failed immigration policies on Asian American women and families. Data indicates that the face of American immigration is primarily female and increasingly Asian American female. NAPAWF’s main policy concerns in response to this data include access to citizenship, preservation of family unity, provision of equitable health care, and freedom from violence and profiling.

“We need to turn the page on immigration. Right now, millions of Asian American women and their families continue to be subjected to immigration policies that deny dignity to our families.

“Asian American women across the country are standing up and demanding that our families be together and have access to justice, health, and freedom from violence. There is no roadmap to citizenship, millions are waiting in the visa backlogs, women are trapped in situations of domestic violence and human trafficking, and too many barriers remain to health care access for our communities. The policy recommendations in this report provide a lifeline for the Asian American women and families crying out for justice,” Yeung said.

NAPAWF calls on all policymakers, immigrant rights advocates, and community leaders to use this groundbreaking report as a starting point to learn about and take urgent action on humane immigration reform. NAPAWF will also be launching a series of community forums to discuss this report throughout the country in cities like Aurora, CO, San Diego, CA, Twin Cities, MN, Atlanta, GA, and Washington, D.C.