Celebrating AAPI Members

As the country commemorated Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, the Union took the opportunity to honor the thousands of AAPI members in its ranks.

Across the US, some 1.4 million AAPI people work in frontline healthcare, making a vital contribution to our nation’s healthcare needs. Despite representing 6.5 percent of the total US population, 8.5 percent of all healthcare workers are from the AAPI community, including 1 in every 11 nurses.

Asian Americans are also the fastest growing ethnic group of eligible voters in the country. Recognizing this, AAPI members in 1199 are actively building power to make change in the up-coming midterm elections. At the 1199 headquarters in Manhattan, a gallery of photos was hung to celebrate the Unions AAPI members and their achievements. We have reproduced a selection of these photos here.

1. James Cyprian I came over to New York with my wife about 13 years ago and we now live in an area of Brooklyn known as ‘Little Pakistan’. Being part of the Christian community in an Islamic country was not easy. I was working as a journalist in Pakistan, and I no longer felt safe. Minority communities in Pakistan do face discrimination. Here in the US, I’m working as a Home Health Aide with the Personal Touch agency, looking after an 86-year-old man. I also continue my journalism here.

4. Nancy Hoàng My immediate and extended family became refugees in the 1990s as a result of the American War on Southeast Asia (SEA).

Though the Fall of Saigon was in 1975, the lasting effects of militarization and colonization on Vietnam and surrounding SEA countries continue to be seen and felt in present day.

I am deeply connected to my Vietnamese heritage and am proud to also be a first-generation college graduate in my family as well. That accomplishment is as much my parents' as it is my own.

I now work in Gift Planning at Planned Parenthood Federation of America and am on the bargaining committee negotiating the first contract for the New York City-office union. I also co-chair the Alliance: AAPI Employee Resource Group (ERG) at PPFA, which offers me an opportunity be an advocate for AAPI staff needs and concerns. Believe us, share our stories, uplift our concerns in spaces where we are not. Be intentional and purposeful in your allyship.

2. Imelda Ababone As a Filipina 1199er living in the United States, my heritage is very important to me. Working as a Dietary Aide at the Alaris Health Nursing Home in Hamilton Park, New Jersey, I think it's important to represent all of yourself and have pride in who you are. I have remained active in politics in the Phillipines as well as in my union here.

5. Wang Wong I am originally from China, but I have lived in the US for many years and worked at the same store in Brooklyn for 37 years now —first it was Pathmark, then Rite Aid and now Walgreens.

At one point they wanted to promote me from Staff Pharmacist to Pharmacy Manager, about ten years ago, but I did not want to be taken out of the union. I wanted to hold onto the pension we had. Also, my daughter was bed-ridden after contracting meningitis at age 3, so my benefits were very important to the family. She passed away three years ago, aged 21. My wife took exceptional care of her throughout her life. She was a great blessing in our lives.

Our two other daughters are now living in Philadelphia. One is an international lawyer, and the other is a Certified Public Accountant.

3. Vishally Ahmed I came over to the US from Guyana in South America when I was 10 years old and became a US citizen at age 16. I went into Home Care during a stressful period in my life. As a newly single mother with two kids to support the flexible hours were great. A little over ten years later, I became a union delegate at the Stella Orton Agency in Staten Island. I also work as a CNA at Richmond University Medical Center.

Political action is also important to me. I went up to Albany recently to demand a permanent wage increase for home care members. I also went to the big climate change rallies in both Washington DC and NYC. There is a lot of risk from climate change back in Guyana.

I remember that my father worked as a mechanic for logging companies there and he used to go away for months at a time. We had no union benefits at home. Everything had to be paid for in cash out of our own pockets. I’m so thankful to be in the US because of the education benefits. As a single Mom with kids aged 19 and 21, that’s important.

1199 Magazine: May / June 2022