APABA-DC Virtual Trial Re-enactment of The Vietnamese Fishermen’s Association v. Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
In celebration of our 40th anniversary, APABA-DC is proud to present with our Champion Sponsor Wiley, a virtual trial re-enactment of The Vietnamese Fishermen’s Association v. Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, to be held on Tuesday, April 20, 2021 from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm ET via Zoom. The Honorable Denny Chin, Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, will provide a keynote address to introduce the event, followed by the re-enactment itself, presented by a distinguished cast of judges, who are listed below.
The re-enactment recounts the post-Vietnam-war struggle of Vietnamese refugees who had resettled in the Gulf Coast region of the United States and worked as fishermen, as they faced violent threats and other terrorizing tactics by local fishermen supported by the Ku Klux Klan (KKK). In the late 1970’s, after an American fisherman was shot and killed by Vietnamese fishermen who pled self-defense and were later acquitted, several hundred people—mostly local fishermen and Klansmen—burned Vietnamese fishermen boats, frightening the Vietnamese community. On April 16, 1981, the Vietnamese fishermen fought back with a lawsuit seeking a preliminary injunction in federal court to prevent the KKK from engaging in further violent and threatening behavior. Ultimately, the injunction was granted, ending the KKK’s campaign against the Vietnamese fishermen.
With the recent rise in hate crimes against the Asian American community due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is critical for us to remember the struggles of the Asian American community and highlight the importance of the justice system in combating both individual and organized hate crimes and hate groups that target the Asian American and other minority communities.
This program has been approved for 1.5 CLE credits in California, Illinois and New York only. When requesting CLE credit in these states, please provide which State Bar and provide your State Bar number when completing the RSVP. Certificates of Attendance will be provided for all other CLE requests. For New York CLE purposes, this program is appropriate for both newly admitted and experienced attorneys.
Cast Members:
Hon. Errol Arthur (DC Superior Court)
Hon. Raymond Chen (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit)
Hon. Theo Chuang (U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland)
Hon. Laura Cordero (DC Superior Court)
Hon. Gwen D’Souza (DC Department of Employment Services)
Hon. Zia Faruqui (U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia)
Hon. Kelly Higashi (DC Superior Court)
Hon. Jeannie Hong (Baltimore City Circuit Court)
Hon. Amit Mehta (U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia)
Hon. Florence Pan (DC Superior Court)
Hon. Jason Park (DC Superior Court)
Hon. Jeri Somers (U.S. Civilian Board of Contract Appeals)
Hon. John Tran (Fairfax County Circuit Court)
When: April 20, 2021, 6:00-8:00 pm ET
Where: Zoom (link to be emailed to registrants)
RSVP here
We also thank our co-sponsors the Asian Pacific American Law Students Associations of Georgetown University Law Center, George Washington University Law School, the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, and the University of Virginia School of Law; the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association; the South Asian Bar Association of Chicago; the South Asian Bar Association of Washington DC; the Taiwanese American Lawyers Committee of Washington, D.C.; the Vietnamese American Bar Association of the Greater Washington D.C. area; the Washington Bar Association; and the Women’s Bar Association of the District of Columbia for their support.
Please contact Anjum Unwala and Melissa Nonaka at apabadc.communityaffairs@gmail.com with any questions.
The views expressed in this event do not necessarily reflect the views of the participants in the event. The re-enactment script is courtesy of the Asian American Bar Association of New York.