2020 Year in Review

2020 has been a remarkable and challenging year.  I hope that you and your families have weathered it safely, and learned how to adapt to quickly changing environments and needs.

By February, we were braced to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic, wondering how best to combat a novel virus.  With COVID-19 came an unwelcome and alarming rise in anti-Asian hate crimes, as some of our political leaders deliberately continued to identify the virus with China and to misname it, in contravention of World Health Organization guidelines.  APABA-PA condemned this harmful conduct, and called for cooperative action to combat the spread of the virus.  We provided information on how to report hate incidents and hold perpetrators accountable, helping to connect community members with the relevant law enforcement or civil enforcement authority, in addition to other organizational resources.

This pandemic has also highlighted the failures and weaknesses in our public health infrastructure, revealing that certain demographic groups are more vulnerable to infection and more likely to have worse outcomes than others.

While the leaders of our public health and healthcare systems were learning how to manage the novel coronavirus in the spring of this year, the names of more Black men and women killed by police under unjustifiable circumstances became a steady beat demanding a response.  In May, the death of George Floyd, among too many others before and since, triggered a wave of protests against racism and police brutality that spanned the globe, forcing many to ask, “How can I help make things better?”  APABA-PA  pledged to support efforts to combat systemic racism, including in policing and the criminal justice system, issues that affect all of us, not just the Black community.  If you are interested in working on these issues, let us know.

Protests against injustice, unfortunately, were also accompanied by damage to and looting of retail storefronts in places like Philadelphia, devastating many businesses, including local small businesses, that were already struggling with reduced custom due to the pandemic restrictions.  APABA-PA, recognizing that business insurance issues would arise in the wake of such incidents, has provided a guide to filing insurance claims and stands ready to provide further information and support as needed.

In September, the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg opened the door for the appointment of a new Supreme Court justice, under circumstances that recalled the 2016 nomination of Judge Merrick Garland.  APABA-PA noted the rule employed by the U.S. Senate to decline to consider the nomination of Judge Garland in 2016, and called on our Pennsylvania senators to be consistent and employ that same rule in filling Justice Ginsburg’s vacated seat.  This call went unheeded, and the seat was filled hastily before the general election.

With November came the long-anticipated general election, a stark referendum on the future direction and leadership of our nation.  APABA-PA helped monitor the polls and ensure language access for non-native English speaking voters, and encouraged voters to submit mail-in ballots to maintain social distancing guidelines whilst we are still grappling with high rates of COVID-19 in Pennsylvania and across the nation.

This has been a heavy year, a year in which we have been deprived of much human contact.  APABA-PA has striven to maintain ties with our members, and we hope to catch up more at our Annual Meeting on Wednesday, December 9th.  Find out what else we accomplished this year, and connect with other members.  After our formal agenda we will have breakout rooms where smaller groups of attendees can simply chat and relax.  If you haven’t RSVP’ed already, please join us!

Thank you for allowing me to lead APABA-PA this year.  May next year bring us progress in promoting justice for all.