Letter to the Editor From Members of Pasadena City College’s Coalition of Asian Pacific Employees

In your “Guest Opinion” dated 17 May 2023 (“Catherine Cheng: Stop Anti-Asian Hate”), Pasadena City College’s Coalition of Asian Pacific Employees (CAPE) was maligned, and we must speak up. At PCC, the Asian Pacific Islander Desi American (APIDA) faculty and staff intentionally work together with other faculty and staff, and we do not appreciate any attempt to divide us.

The Coalition of Asian Pacific Employees has a 50-year history with the campus. We are an inclusive group of about 350 current staff and faculty employees who mentor and serve the students of this campus. CAPE staff, managers, faculty, and community members collaborated on a $ 1.5 million federal grant proposal to increase APIDA student success, degree completion, leadership development, and mental health. A large part of that proposal focused on addressing the impact of anti-Asian hate on PCC’s students. In addition, CAPE’s collective voices contributed to the creation of a student advisory board known as the APIDA Advisory Assembly, composed of API student leaders and led by an API faculty member. Together, they inform and support the college’s effort in increasing the enrollment and representation of API students at PCC. We coordinate student scholarships, and we lead special programs which include the APIDA Graduation this May. Prior to Covid, we coordinated annual field trips to the Manzanar Pilgrimage.

For most of us, sponsorship and coordination of such projects are not in our job descriptions; we volunteer our time and wallets because we believe in PCC students. We invite all to join us in our efforts to serve our students and thus, our communities.

We want to share our own story of strength and endurance. We will not be used to drive a wedge between us and other oppressed groups. Our stories in America – and at Pasadena City College – are all intertwined and cannot be separated. We know the value of intersection. Our struggles are not all that different, and we intend to rise together.

We invite all to join us and get involved. Put our students first, listen to their needs, see them for who they are – beautiful, complicated and multi-facetted. Come and volunteer at our events, meet and mentor our students, and donate to our scholarship efforts.

Respectfully from these members of CAPE,

Susie Ling, Associate Professor of Asian American Studies serving Pasadena City College since 1984
Carrie Afuso, Student Affairs Advisor serving Pasadena City College since 1992
Dr. Tooktook Thongthiraj, Division Dean of English and Language Studies, serving PCC since 2002
Olivia Loo, Director of International Students serving PCC since 2018
Que Dang, Executive Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion serving PCC since 2021