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克城消息
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克城成功舉辦亞太文化節活動
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趙小蘭出席克城亞太文化節活動 |
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Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao Spoke at the A/PAF Cleveland Asian
Heritage Month Celebration Special Report |
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by Lihua Feng (Leah Feng Patuwo) |
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May is a wonderful month for Northeast Ohio.
Trees spring to live after a long sleep through the winter months.
Buds are blossoming into flowers and delicate green leaves are
shooting out on the branches. Mother earth turns lively green with
birds singing and willows are dancing in the wind. This beautiful
month has been the Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month since 1977.
On May 5 this year, the City of Cleveland and the Asian/Pacific
American Federation - Cleveland (A/PAF) sponsored the Asian Heritage
Month with a kick-off event at Cleveland City Hall Rotunda. The event
was free and the theme was "East and West can meet and both can
benefit."
A/PAF is a coalition of Asian ethnic communities
in Northern Ohio including: Asian Cultural Society of Ohio,
International Community Council, Japanese American Citizens League,
Philippine American Society of Ohio, The Laotian Community of
Cleveland, Oberlin College Asian American Alliance, Federation of
India Community Association, Friendship Foundation of
American-Vietnamese, Vietnamese Community in Greater Cleveland, Inc.,
Korean American Association of Greater Cleveland, Taiwanese American
Association of Greater Cleveland, and Organization of Chinese
Americans of Greater Cleveland. The city of Cleveland is the home of
117 different ethnic communities.
The Celebration began at noon with the procession of Lincoln West High
School Students carrying flags of many nations. After the warm welcome
from Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson and opening remarks from A/PAF
President Gia Hoa Ryan, proclamations from representatives of
Cleveland City Council, U.S. Senator George Voinovich, Governor Ted
Strickland and Cuyahoga County Commissioner were read. Mr. Le Nguyen,
the Asian American Liaison of Community Relation Board-City of
Cleveland and Chair of the Heritage Day was honored with an award for
his contribution.
Elaine L. Chao, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of
Labor, was the guest speaker for this event. Secretary Chao is the
first Chinese-American, and the first Asian American woman to hold a
position in the U.S. President’s Cabinet. After congratulating the
Asian/Pacific communities for the celebration, she emphasized that
Asian American is an important part of this country and affirmed Asian
American devotion to the American society. Secretary Chao also
encouraged Asian American from all professions to be proud of their
dedicated contributions to this country and their heritage.
In her remarks, she mentioned that the Bush
Administration has appointed over 400 Asian American to positions in
his Administration, more than any other U.S. Presidents in history.
Two of these were Cabinet Secretaries. She herself has appointed more
Asian Pacific Americans to positions in the Department of Labor (DoL)
than any other Cabinet Secretary, and Anna Hui, the Associate Deputy
Secretary who accompanied her at the Celebration, was one of them.
To help Asian Pacific American workers and
employers understand their rights and obligations, the Rapid Employee
Assistance in Chinese Hotline (REACH) was set up in New York City.
Chinese speaking staff answers the hotline (212-264-4175) for workers
with questions. Information regarding Fair Labor Standard Act (FLSA)
is provided in Chinese and reinforced using posters and wallet-sized
cards. To make non-English speaking workers aware of government
services and labor rules, the DoL’s Occupational Safety and Health
Administration (OSHA) provides worker safety awareness materials in
Chinese and Vietnamese. Her Department also distributes Chinese
Language manuals for teen workers to ensure their safety.
After Secretary Chao’s speech, Anna Hui (Associate Deputy
Secretary) warmly escorted me to a small Media Conference Room. Not
long after, Secretary Elaine Chao walked energetically into the room.
Her eyes radiated the light of wisdom and a beautiful smile was
constantly on her face. She shook my hand and greeted me in Chinese.
We talked about culture, family, children, education, opportunity,
community, etc. She also looked through our Erie Chinese Journal. She
seemed like a big sister I haven’t seen for a long time. I was
touched.
After the greetings, she mentioned about helping
Asian Pacific Americans overcome challenges and more fully participate
in the American Dream. Funds are made available for educational and
vocational training, counseling, peer support, mentoring, life skills
services, and job placement services to enhance employability of the
participants. During her Cleveland visit, she also delivered the
keynote address at the at new Cleveland Job Corps Center open house.
The mission of the center is to provide students with education and
training upon which they can build a career and a brighter future. The
$35 million Cleveland Job Corps Center includes nine buildings on a 25
acre campus, which has the capacity to serve about 440 students who
will receive education and training in fields such as health care,
construction, computers and tax preparation.
The Grammy Award winner pianist Dr. Angeline Chang was
the next keynote speaker. Dr. Chang is the Head of Keyboard Studies
and Associate Professor of Piano at Cleveland State University. It is
quite unusual for a Grammy Award winner to be both a performer and
especially professor.? Angeline Chang was the first pianist of Asian
descent and the first female of Asian descent to win a Grammy Award.
She won a Grammy for Best Instrumental Soloist Performance with
Orchestra.
In her speech, Dr. Chang emphasized the importance of
family and education: “Without our families and teachers, we would not
be where we are today.” She then elaborated on her 3 C’s Elements of
Success: Care, Commitment and Confidence in relating to self and
community (family, friends, colleagues, and all interactions). Dr.
Chang advised care for yourself and community responsibly, and commit
and follow-through on that care. Proceed with confidence because it is
a foundation for further successes. She concluded her speech with a
quote from Darwin: "It is not the strongest of the species that
survives, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to
change." Dr. Chang encouraged us to dare to be open and responsive to
change through and from care, commitment and confidence.
Following the speeches, the audience was entertained by
cultural performances from Solon Chinese School, guitarist Kevin
Namkoong and Possicobilities, a jazz quintet from China consisting of
3 Chinese and 2 Americans. Fantastic exhibits of Asian arts from
various Asian American communities are displayed in the rotunda. Some
of these will be on display for the entire month of May. Last but not
least, the celebration would not be complete without guests enjoying a
variety of delicious Asian ethnic food.?
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