Tuesday, February 8, marked a new stepping stone for Chicago Asian-Americans on their ascent in
becoming a major political force in the regional voting palette. In alliance with thirty other Asian-
American community service organizations, CKACC co-sponsored the Mayoral Candidates' Forum, held at
Saint Augustine College.  The event was hosted by Pan Asian Voter Empowerment (PAVE), operating
under the Asian American Institute.  Over 700 attendees were present to show their support; groups
arriving on shuttle buses from Korean, Vietnamese, Chinese, Muslim, Indian, and Cambodian community
support centers all stepped up to show their diverse strength of numbers and be heard.

The panel of mayoral candidates featured Carol Moseley-Braun, Gery Chico, Miguel Del Valle, and Patricia
Van Pelt-Watkins.  Rahm Emanuel was invited to participate, but did not attend.  Facilitating the flow of
the event was Ravi Baichwal, anchorman from ABC7 News.  On-site real-time translation of questions
and candidates' responses was offered in both Korean and Chinese languages.  Our Executive Director,
Brandon Yu, was one of several representatives selected to ask the candidates about the policies they
support in addressing the discriminatory and lingual barriers for the Asian-American demographic in
Chicago. 

Topics discussed:
-Extending equal protection by law enforcement to citizens of differing language and culture;
-Funding and aiding community support services to minorities with few resources to turn to;
-Equality in granting government contracts and bids;
-Supporting and sustaining small businesses that create jobs;
-Educational support to prevent dropouts and recover those who already have dropped out.

Please support your community by registering to vote.  Election Day is on February 22, 2011.  Polls are
open from 6:00a to 7:00p.  The CKACC office is open for voting for residents of the 40th Ward.