Alliance of South Asians Taking Action (ASATA)

Creating Safety in the Bay Area, Pakistan, and Around the World

May 13, 2010

Last week, Faisal Shahzad was arrested for allegedly trying to set off a car bomb in New York's Times Square. Local and federal branches of U.S. government have responded by spreading hateful messages that feed into a renewed fear of immigrants. These messages put immigrant communities at risk of being targeted by racist violence in the U.S. and our homelands.

Mainstream media and many progressive groups within the U.S. have been noticeably silent about what these messages mean for the safety of immigrant communities in America. The Alliance of South Asians Taking Action (ASATA) is responding to this silence and countering some of the dangerous statements put out by government officials. Additionally, ASATA shares some thoughts on building the long-term, broad-based, multi-issue alliances needed to counter violent government repression that is currently targeting Muslims, South Asians, Arabs and members of other immigrant communities.

In President Obama’s inauguration speech, he said: "We reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals." We agree with that message. But we’re seeing government agencies do the exact opposite.

From Arizona to Afghanistan, No One Is Illegal!

The Land Belongs to the People who Work It!

International Workers Day- Fruitvale Rally and March
Saturday, May 1st

1pm-2pm program at Fruitvale BART Plaza

2pm March to Federal Building

In the midst of national marches for immigration reform, attacks on immigrant communities and working class people still continue.

Please join the ASATA coords for the May Day march and rally for workers rights and immigrant rights: 1pm-2pm at Fruitvale BART Plaza.

As of June 8, 2007…

What happened with the Senate immigration bill:

• Bill was problematic to begin with (see below)
• Bill was made worse by adding anti-immigrant amendments (see below)
• Vote to limit debate (to help speed bill’s passage) failed on June 7
• Senate majority leader Reid tabled further work on the bill
• Immigration reform now stalled, not dead, in Senate — White House and Reid say the bill’s coming back (no timeline, but maybe later in ‘07)

ASATA co-sponsors a new exhibit at the Asian Resource Gallery in Oakland’s Chinatown.

“One Nation Under Surveillance: Reimaging the South Asian Community” opens Thursday, August 10, 2006, at the Asian Resource Gallery in Oakland Chinatown. Opening reception at 6pm with refreshments, performances and film screening of “Punjabi Cab.” Gallery hours: M-F, 9am-6pm, 310 8th St., Oakland. Free.

An earlier version of this article appeared on the front page of Bayosphere

Lodi Revealed
by Mini Kahlon

Bombs in the UK, the shock and fear of my relatives living in London, and my recent trip to Lodi, CA jostle with each other in my mind. Action, Reaction, Reality.

On June 8th, 2005 the media received a copy of an affidavit from the FBI accusing two men they had picked up in the Central Valley town of Lodi, California, of terrorism. As more men (including two imams) were arrested in Lodi, the FBI filed their affidavits with the court. These affidavits did not mention terrorism, but were changed to accuse the men of lying to the FBI. By then, the truth was too late; the media blitz had occurred, and “terror,” “mosque,” “Al Qaeda,” Muslim-sounding names, and the city of Lodi had all been conflated.

This article was widely reposted. It elicited discussion on Sepia Mutiny, Ihsan Blog, SF Bay Area Indymedia, and the Pacific News Service. It also appeared in American Muslim Perspective, Bay Area United Against War Newsletter, Not In Our Name, Infoshop News, Tokyo クリ, and Nha Hang Chay's blog. It has also appeared in India Currents (August 2005), and a different version appeared in Siliconeer (July 2005).

The FBI "Witch-Hunt" in Lodi
by Veena Dubal and Sunaina Maira

On June 7th 2005, national and international media attention focused on the small, agricultural town of Lodi, located approximately forty miles south of Sacramento. The FBI arrested and detained two individuals, both Pakistani-Americans, who they suspected had AL-Qaeda affiliations.

This piece originally appeared in the April 2003 issue of "The Force," the newsletter of Asian and Pacific Islanders for Community Empowerment (API ForCE)

ASATA, the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action, based in the San Francisco Bay Area, was formed 3 years ago, to address oppression and exploitation within and against the South Asian community. After September 11th, 2001, South Asian, Arab and Muslim communities faced a sharp increase in hate violence. ASATA immediately began working to educate community members on their rights and act as their advocate through media and youth programs. Simultaneously, ASATA recognized that the hostility against Muslims in the United States only served to aggravate the environment of increased violence against Muslims in South Asia. Although ASATA continued to focus explicitly on antagonism against Muslims in the U.S., these connections in anti-Muslim sentiment around the world provided broader context for its work.