The Asian Industry B2B invited members of the business, nonprofit, religious, government, and educational communities to attend a special bilingual (Mandarin and English) event that addressed issues of concern in the Chinese communities of the San Gabriel Valley.
The event had an attendance of over 120 people from diverse backgrounds. Longo Toyota was the venue host and food from Town Sent Restaurant in Covina was served. Event sponsor was City Councilman and immediate past mayor of Arcadia, Peter Amundson. The Chinese community united to answer the question, “Are public school values aligned with Asians?” World Journal, China Press, News Agency America, ETTV America and The Epoch Times were on site.
The event kicked off with a short film based on the powerful marijuana protests. The film chronicled the Chinese parents who are unhappy about the marijuana plant being built in such close proximity to a school, only half a mile away. The City Council voted 4-1 to move ahead with the project. Efforts around the protests and the film creation were led by Orange Club leader, Saga Zhou, who spoke briefly on the topic. Some cheered, some expressed dissatisfaction.
Presenting another dimension to the issue, Andy Huang, CEO of Nerovana Corp, and a cannabis business specialist, spoke about the benefits of legalization, statistics and nuances around cannabis and THC that was educational to the audience, no matter where they stood. Dr. Kewei Zhou, a respected biologist, spoke on differences between CBD and THC, hitting on an important point that pure CBD is hard to find as chances of THC contamination are high, especially around unregulated businesses. Both Andy and Kewei made arguments around regulation and legalization.
The second half of the event featured a discussion of the California Department of Education framework curriculum changes on sex education, which exposes middle schoolers to graphic demonstrations of contraception, and elementary schoolers and kindergarteners to the gender identity spectrum, required by law with no ability for parents to opt out. Two experts in the field spoke, including Gina Gleason of Faith and Public Policy and Karen England of Capitol Resource Institute, who traveled from out of state to address the Chinese community. This portion was translated and members of the audience clarified facts, while challenging that transgenderism was not just an American issue, but one that is dealt with in China.
Former West Covina mayor Mike Spence and El Monte school district members were in attendance, but didn’t make much comment as the different sides were presented.
Despite some heated moments, the community still came together in a civil manner to learn more nuances about these important issues, ultimately judged as enriching and educational by the attendees.
About Asian Industry B2B (AIB2B): AIB was founded by community leader, Marc Ang, for businesses and professionals in the east San Gabriel Valley to gather once a month, every second Wednesday. The mission is to build an intimate network of quality professionals engaged in charity, cultural and political activities, to foster meaningful collaborations, enrich business owners’ lives and support a platform to elevate the Asian American community through local business leaders.
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