New Asian Leaders calls for Fair and Equal Treatment
of Officer Peter Liang    

WASHINGTON, DC — New Asian Leaders (NAL), a non-profit Asian American leadership organization headquartered in Washington, DC, calls upon all parties, including the de Blasio Administration, the New York Police Department (NYPD), and the Brooklyn Supreme Court to treat former NYPD Police Officer Peter Liang with fair and equal consideration in the sentencing round after the verdict rendered on February 12, 2016.

“We live in a time when there tends to no longer be overt systematic discrimination against Chinese Americans and Asian Americans,” said Cliff Zhonggang Li, Executive Director of NAL.
“However, Asian Americans such as Ms. Sherry Chen, Professor Xiaoyang Xi, and former Officer Peter Liang are treated unfairly, unequally, and less protectively because of our perceived weak political status that does not impart regard and voice to the concerns of Asian Americans. All too often, Asian Americans are put at the bottom of people‟s priorities, considerations, or deliberations.”

“We are saddened by the death of Mr. Akai Gurley, and give our deepest condolences to his bereaved family. While we are not in the position to ascertain the guilt or innocence of former Officer Liang in the death of Akai Gurley, many members, including the board of NAL, are disturbed that Liang is being treated differentially and unequally compared to other NYPD police officers, of which close to a hundred in 2015 alone had escaped charges of taking black lives. We have to ask, why was Liang the only police officer to be prosecuted and convicted among all of these cases? The lack of indictments in other civilian deaths at the hands of police shows to many Asian Americans that Liang was made a scapegoat by those in power who may believe that they could prosecute him without major repercussions because the Asian American community is considered „weak‟ and „fragmented.‟”

One local Chinese community member has called the verdict „unfair‟ and added: “We don‟t dare tell our kids to become police officers. It‟s so scary.” We can‟t let this be the legacy for our future generations! New Asian Leaders calls upon Asian Americans to have our collective voices heard. Actively participate in protest parades, meetings, and discussions in a civil manner and reach out to various stakeholders of our larger community. We call upon our community to rethink our responsibility as citizens of this great nation. Join the political process, vote and hold elected officials accountable, shatter the image of Asian Americans as a silent passive community, and build the leadership foundations for a brighter future for our children. Finally, we demand real transparency instead of bureaucratic obfuscations about how Peter Liang was picked for prosecution and insist upon fair and equal treatment of all suspects and officers by the NYPD.

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If you would like to schedule an interview with Mr. Cliff Zhonggang Li, Executive Director of New Asian Leaders, please call NAL direct at 954-233-0672 x 527 or email us at press@NewAsianLeaders.org. New Asian Leaders (NAL) is committed to encouraging Asian Americans to participate in the political process and to ensure the establishment of future leaders in the Asian American community.