Brother and sister launch Montgomery Asian Cares organization in effort to boost political empowerment.
By: Jill Matthews
MONTGOMERY David Lin is a Republican. His sister, Wei-Ching Lin, is a Democrat. Despite these differences, they agree on one thing: The Asian-American community in Montgomery needs to step up its political participation if it wants to get attention from either party and if it wants to influence the wider township community on issues it finds important.
Together, they decided to start Montgomery Asian Cares, a nonpartisan, grassroots organization committed to building the Asian-American community in Montgomery through methods such as political empowerment.
"We have a sizable presence in terms of numbers of people but we have no political voice," said David Lin.
Asian-Americans are among the most highly educated and economically stable ethnic group in the United States, yet most have remained nearly politically invisible in the state, according to the MAC Web site, www.montgomeryasiancares.org.
MAC has already begun to put its mission into action. On Saturday, MAC held an Asian voter registration drive at the Hua Xia Chinese School in Hillsborough, providing voter information to about 30 people. MAC will conduct another voter registration drive Sunday afternoon at the Hillsborough Chinese School, located in the Hillsborough Elementary School.
But MAC has plans beyond just increasing political awareness and Asian voter registration. The group will also promote neighborhood-based support groups to encourage social interaction, ride sharing, vacation planning and family support during emergencies. For example, a mother who has to stay late at work could call up another member and ask if she could pick up her child from tennis practice.
MAC formed after its organizers became inspired by the candidacy of Chinese-American resident Cecilia Xie Birge for the Township Committee, a race she eventually won. During the campaign, they scrambled to reach out to all Asian-Americans registered to vote in Montgomery. But in the last days before the election, the Lins realized there was no townshipwide Asian organization or contact list with which to reach out to Asian voters.
All members of a community have questions about how their tax dollars are used, but many in the Chinese community do not know whom to ask, where to ask or even how the government functions, Ms. Birge has said. And by participating in the township, through schools, volunteering or running for office, members of the Chinese community can use their skills to give back to the community and enhance the township, she said.
The 2000 U.S. Census reported that nearly 12 percent of the Montgomery population is Asian, making it the largest minority group in the township. Many believe the Asian population in Montgomery has grown even larger since the census, with most of the Asians of Chinese decent.
Similar Asian-American organizations are forming around the state and the nation, including the 80-20 Initiative. The 80-20 Initiative is a national nonpartisan political action committee designed to urge the pan-Asian community to form a swing-voting bloc in order to enhance its political clout. The national group also has a New Jersey chapter.
In addition, New Jersey Gov. James E. McGreevey created the Governor’s Asian-American Commission in 2002. The commission is designed to develop and coordinate statewide programs to recognize the contributions of the New Jersey Asian-American community, as well as to increase awareness of governmental affairs and community and social service resources that may benefit Asian-Americans.