Organization of Chinese Americans

The Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA) was founded in 1973 to bring together Chinese American communities across the United States and to focus on issues in the United States rather than in China. The original concept for the [Page 1660]organization was to create a voice for Chinese Americans, analogous to the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for African Americans or the Japanese American Citizens League for Americans of Japanese descent.

The OCA held its first national convention on June 9, 1973, and K. L. Wang was elected the organization's first president. Today, there are over 80 chapters and affiliates of the OCA across the United States, and the organization's focus has broadened to include the interest of Americans from all Asian and Pacific countries.

The mission of the OCA, according to its Web site, is to advance “the social, political, and economic well-being of Asian Pacific Americans.” Specific goals include fostering cultural heritage; advancing community building and coalitions; promoting civic participation, education, and leadership; and advocating for social justice. The OCA explicitly refrains from taking positions on the politics of any foreign country. The OCA is headquartered in Washington, D.C., where it monitors national legislation and policy issues and also works in coalition with other Asia-Pacific organizations. The current president is Ken Lee, a 2008 retiree from UPS, where he was the first Asian American to achieve the rank of vice president and where he also served on the corporate diversity committee.

The OCA is engaged in several efforts to draw attention to America's past history with regard to immigrants and to push for reforms in the current immigration system. The 1882 Project takes its name from the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, a federal law that prohibited Chinese laborers from immigrating to the United States and that led to passage of many state and local laws restricting the rights of Chinese living in the country. The 1882 Project aims to educate Americans about the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act and to achieve passage of a congressional statement recognizing the wrongs done to Chinese Americans by this act. The OCA opposes current attacks on jus soli, or birthright citizenship, which guarantees the right of anyone born in the United States to claim citizenship, and supports the DREAM Act, which provides several pathways for undocumented citizens under the age of 18 to achieve citizenship. The OCA also supports the Reuniting Families Act to help family members of U.S. citizens receive visas to enter the United States.

The OCA runs several programs to help Asian-Pacific Americans attend an institution of higher education, develop their leadership skills, and advance in their chosen careers. The OCA created its first scholarship program in 1993, and it partners with various companies and foundations to fund scholarships for Asian-Pacific Americans attending institutions of higher education.

In 2011, 10 OCA-AXA scholarships were awarded in recognition of students’ academic achievement, leadership, and community service; 15 OCA-UPS Gold Mountain Scholarships to students who were the first in their family to attend college; and 15 OCA-Verizon College Scholarships went to students demonstrating financial need, leadership, achievement, and commitment to community service. The OCA runs a paid summer internship program in Washington, D.C., to introduce students to public policy issues and to help them develop their leadership skills. It also provides a free mentorship program, sponsored by UPS, which pairs Asian American professionals with leaders in their field for a three-month period that includes four one-on-one mentoring sessions and two mentoring networking sessions. The B3 program, created in 2009, aids Asian-Pacific American professionals advance their careers through networking, mentoring, and professional development. The “3 B's” of the program's name stand for Build, Breakthrough, and Believe, and the program provides a number of workshops and seminars on topics such as personal branding and corporate success strategies.

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