Pacific/Asian Coalition New Jersey Chapter Records

The Pacific/Asian Coalition, New Jersey Chapter (PAC NJ), is a nonprofit group operating to promote the welfare and highlight the issues of the Asian-Pacific American Community in New Jersey. The organization was a part of the National Coalition of Asian American and Pacific Island People for Human Services and Action, or Pacific/Asian Coalition for short. The Pacific/Asian Coalition was started as a by-product of the first National Asian American Conference on Mental Health which was held in San Francisco in April of 1972. The organization changed its name in May of 1973 to the shorter title. The national organization was created as a multi-ethnic organization for people of Pacific Island and Asian descent, living within the United States. The goal was to bring different Pacific and Asian ethnic groups together "with the conviction that though each ethnic group is different, they share common concerns, that these common concerns can unite them, and that, together, they can meet common concerns more effectively."(1) The national organization was composed of regional steering committees: Pacific Northwest, Hawaii, Northern California, Southern California, North Central, South East, Mountain and West South Central, Mid-Atlantic, and New England. PAC NJ was created at the Mid-Atlantic Conference of Asian Americans in 1974.

PAC NJ aims "to advocate and facilitate human services for Asian and Pacific Island Americans; to provide technical assistance to them in developing locally determined human service programs; to educate people about issues affecting the lives of Asian and Pacific Island Americans."(2) The organization was one of the first Asian-Pacific groups formed within the State of New Jersey. It worked mainly within northern New Jersey, where a majority of the membership lived. The members planned a wide-range of events including social and cultural programs, together with workshops and seminars on a variety of topics including discrimination problems, Equal Opportunity laws and immigration laws. They compiled professional directories focusing on the Asian-Pacific American community. They also held their own annual Asian Awareness Festival and represented the Asian-Pacific community at New Jersey International Festivals.

PAC NJ began a newsletter in January of 1976, entitled News and Views. The same year it also began holding events, including the First Annual Asian Awareness Festival. Within the first year it also gathered the names of over a hundred people who showed interest in the organization. Though the organization was operational beforehand, the by-laws of PAC NJ were approved in 1977. The group held a membership picnic and sessions on Asian American Consciousness Raising and the Asian American Experience, continued the Asian Awareness Festival, and exhibited at the Middlesex County Third Annual International Folk Festival and the International Women's Year Conference held at Princeton University. The year of 1977 also saw the organization form a legal committee to provide assistance to several Asian-Pacific Americans with discrimination grievances, while PAC National submitted a statement to the Public Hearing of the President's Commission on Mental Health about the problems that Asian-Pacific Americans were facing.

The following year, 1978, was one of the most active for PAC NJ. The organization, which was originally funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, became incorporated as a 501(c)(3) organization, making it a nonprofit organization. The group's president, Dr. C.S. Yang, gave the opening speech at a meeting of Asian Americans with White House Fellows. Members represented PAC NJ in an Equal Employment Opportunity forum and seminars about Racial Myths and Realities; were named Outstanding Young Women of America, one such member being Mrs. Sue Pai Yang (3) ; and were also appointed as White House Fellows. They worked to remove the book, The Five Chinese Brothers, from school curriculums and libraries, reached out to Asian-American leaders within New Jersey to make them aware of their efforts, held various events, and complied a Medical Directory of New Jersey Asian-American Medical Professionals. The membership had grown to seventy-five people. The efforts of the Asian-Pacific American community nationally resulted in President Jimmy Carter proclaiming May 4-11, 1979, Asian/Pacific Heritage Week. Nationally and locally the Asian-Pacific American community pulled together to help the Boat People of Vietnam. PAC NJ worked to bring awareness to the problem and gave suggestions to members on how they could help, and it joined with Chinese American organizations to form the United Chinese Americans of New Jersey for the Boat People.

Though the mid-1980s, PAC NJ continued its work representing the Asian-Pacific community at local events throughout the state. The organization continued its newsletter which focused on the events that it was holding, as well as the issues that the Asian-Pacific community was experiencing throughout the country. In 1983, PAC National became inactive due to a lack of operational funds, and PAC NJ noted that attendance at meetings dropped. It was believed that "many of us [members] have other priorities since there has been few urgent issues to resolve through PAC."(4) In 1984, the Pacific/Asian Coalition of Professional Associations (PACPA) became part of the PAC aegis. (5) The organization continued its events and advocacy though the 1980s. (6) The organization still exists today, though it is not active.

(1) News and Views, January 1976, Vol. 1, No. 1. Box 2, Folder 5. (2) Ibid. (3) Mrs. Yang donated this collection to the Rutgers University Libraries. An alumna of the Rutgers School of Law-Newark, Mrs. Yang became interested in studying law through her work with PAC NJ. As one of the founding members and former president and secretary of the organization, Mrs. Yang and her husband, Dr. C.S. Yang, worked to advocate for the Asian-Pacific American community and to highlight the advances the community was making. (4) News and Views, Fall 1983, Vol. 5, No. 2. Box 2, Folder 5. (5) News and Views, Spring 1984, Vol. 6, No. 1. Box 2, Folder 5. There is nothing more about the Pacific/Asian Coalition of Professional Associations within this collection. (6) Ibid.