MEDIA ADVISORY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 30, 2006 / For more information, contact:
Shirley Lin, Communications Coordinator
212.966.5932 x213

PRESS CONFERENCE FOR AALDEF 2006 JUSTICE IN ACTION AWARDS HONOREES

New York, NY—The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF)will hold a pre-dinner press conference with 2006 Justice in Action Award honorees Ivan K. Fong, executive vice president, chief legal officer and secretary of Cardinal Health, Charles J. Ogletree, Jr., Harvard Law School professor and civil rights leader, andKatrina vanden Heuvel, editor and publisher of The Nation.

Event: Press Conference with 2006 “Justice in Action” Honorees Ivan K. Fong,

Charles J. Ogletree, and Katrina vanden Heuvel, emcee Vivan Lee, and

presenters U.S. District Judge Denny Chin and Peter Kwong

Time: 5:15pm, Thursday, Feb. 2, 2006

Location: PIER SITY, Chelsea Piers (Hudson River between 22nd / 23rd Streets)

Press RSVP: Contact Shirley Lin at 212.966.5932 x213 or .

Over 800leaders of the business, legal, civil rights and artscommunities are expected to attend AALDEF’s 2006 Lunar New Year Gala celebrating the Year of the Dog. WNBC-TV reporter Vivian Lee will be the emcee. Also participating in the event program will be U.S. District Judge Denny Chin, the first Asian American appointed to the federal bench on the East Coast; David Dinkins, the first African American mayor of New York City; Peter Kwong, Hunter College professor and Chinese American historian; and Kal Penn, the South Asian actor featured in such films as “Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle,” the soon-to-be-released “Superman Returns,” and “The Namesake,” based on the Jhumpa Lahiri novel and directed by Mira Nair.

Proceeds from the Lunar New Year Gala benefit AALDEF's legal and educational programs in immigrant rights, economic justice for workers, voting rights and civic participation, affirmative action, language access to services,youth rights andeducational equality, and the elimination of hate violence and police misconduct.

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The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), founded in 1974, is a national organization that protects and promotes the civil rights of Asian Americans. By combining litigation, advocacy, education, and organizing, AALDEF works with Asian American communities across the country to secure human rights for all.