New map of Arizona’s congressional districts – press conference for minority media (picture)

New map of Arizona’s congressional districts – press conference for minority media (picture) Left to right: John A. Loredo Leon…

Left to right: John A. Loredo Leonard Gorman Jose Herrera Oscar Tillman Linda Brown

(Alberta Times)

At 11 a.m. on October 18, American New Media held a press conference for minority media on the new map selected by Arizona congressmen at the SEIU building on Seventh Street in Phoenix. There are nearly twenty ethnic media outlets, and the Alberta Times was the only Chinese-language media invited to participate. At the press conference, Jose Herrera, Vice Chairman of the Arizona District Drawing Commission (AIRC), spoke first. He introduced the division of districts. According to the results of the 2010 census, Arizona was divided into nine districts for congressional elections. He also introduced the procedures for dividing districts in detail, hoping to get more suggestions at the meeting. Linda Brown, executive director of the Arizona Advocacy Network, said she hopes to use the power of the media to bring the most people of different ethnic groups to the hearing to protect the interests of the most people. Oscar Tillman, chairman of the National Committee of Colored People of Mary Cooper, said that minorities should take advantage of this gerrymandering opportunity, which will directly affect the interests of voters in the next 10 years. John A. Loredo, the first Hispanic Democratic leader, and Leonard Gorman, an Indian, both expressed their views on the new map from their own experiences. As an ethnic group with rapid immigration growth, Chinese Americans are also very concerned about this selection and demarcation, because the development of the 1070 Immigration Act and the construction of city ordinances will be closely related to this map demarcation. Chinese Americans hope that the proportion of ethnic minorities can be taken into account across the state and the electoral districts can be divided fairly. We also hope that the demarcation committee can provide a communication platform to allow more Chinese Americans to participate in providing feedback. The second round of public hearings is underway. Chinese friends can call or go online to participate in discussions to protect the interests of Chinese Americans. To participate in the discussion: (602) 542-5236 or http://azredistricting.org/public-input.asp.