Newark’s Sister Dong Hong represents Asians, Catholics at White House roundtable
Sister Dong Hong Marie Zhang, the liaison to the Chinese Community for the Archdiocese of Newark, was invited to participate in a White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islands (WHIAAPI) Regional Network Roundtable discussion. Members of the White House, federal agencies, Asian American advocates, and community leaders from across New York and New Jersey attended this conversation.
This virtual meeting was designed to give Asian community leaders a platform to discuss their specific priorities and needs to provide federal partners with the opportunity to share resources and services. The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted AAPI (Asian Americans and Pacific Islands) communities, and there has been a rise in hate crimes and incidents against Asians.
Sister Dong Hong said: “Our concerns and needs are focused on funds for the Catholic Church; discrimination in schools, on the street and in employment; hate crimes on Asians; compensation for the victims; financial relief for bankrupt small business; vaccine access for undocumented; psychological problems and mental illness.”
The White House and the federal agencies try to support the AAPI communities and make relevant policies during the virtual dialogue.
Over 60 people attended the virtual conference, and almost half of the participators came from federal agencies. Asian representatives were from all corners of society. Philip Wu, the Chinese Apostolate coordinator for the Diocese of Metuchen, and Sister Dong Hong attended the meeting as representatives of the AAPI Catholic Church.
They discussed and compiled some concerns and suggestions before the virtual conference and submitted them at the meeting. During the meeting, Sister Dong Hong shared her concerns for the Catholic Church, which was impacted like other small businesses by the pandemic.
Before the virtual meeting Sister Dong Hong collected opinions from the Chinese Faithful through prayer meetings and from the non-Christian Chinese community through an article with an online survey. Over 3,000 people read the article and some of them gave feedback.
To learn more about the Chinese Catholic Apostolate of the Archdiocese of Newark visit https://www.rcan.org/chinese-catholic-apostolate.
Feature photo: Screenshot of White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islands (WHIAAPI) Regional Network Roundtable discussion. (Courtesy of Sister Dong Hong Marie Zhang).
