Thursday and Friday marked the second annual AAPI Summit at the state Capitolin Albany. 

As chair of the state Legislature’s Asian Pacific American Task Force, Assemblymember Grace Lee was a driving force behind two days of panels, keynote speakers and work groups.

“I don’t think we’ve ever seen as many Asian Americans in the Capitol as we did today,” she said.

Lee said the two-day event was about celebrating milestones and work the task force and other partners have accomplished in recent years, while also charting a path forward in finding solutions to community needs.

“We’re getting record funding in the budget every year. We’ve passed laws to make Lunar New Year and Diwali school holidays,” she said. “We live in one of the most diverse states in the country. We have one of the fastest growing AAPI communities in the country. It’s not something we can ignore. As New York state legislators, we are becoming an increasing force within New York state on the political side but also a growing community that needs attention.”

State Sen. John Liu told Spectrum News 1 that turnout more than doubled this year. He said for years he has watched events like the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic & Asian Legislative Caucus’ traditional Caucus Weekend each February and felt a similar event was necessary both to celebrate achievements and address the needs of New York’s Asian American and Pacific Islander community.

“I’ve been Asian my whole life. We’re finally here,” he said. “I’ve been attending Caucus Weekend for over 20 years, the SOMOS gatherings. For the longest time I’ve dreamed that we should have our own gathering as well. This is a huge historical milestone not just for our AAPI community but the state of New York as well.”

The summit also discussed legislation being considered to address a multitude of issues, including disparities when it comes to diabetes screenings for AAPI New Yorkers, as well as educational programming geared toward combatting hate.

“We’re working hard to try to get a curriculum bill passed, which would have the teaching of the Asian American experience, Asian American history in public schools to counteract the extreme Asian hate we saw just a few years ago and continues to this day,” he said.

The event also stressed representation at amid a federal administration that has targeted diversity and inclusion measures — including when it comes to history.

Shining a spotlight on the parallels that exist between representation in media and politics, Friday’s keynote panel featured actors Asif Ali and Saagar Shaikh of the show Deli Boys.

“If we’re not there, they tell our stories and we already know the stories they’re going to tell about us,” Shaikh said.

Liu said that striving for representation in politics both at the top of the ticket as well as the staff level is just as important, as is recognizing the realities of the past in creating a better path forward, drawing contrast with the Trump administration’s efforts to roll back Diversity, Equity and Inclusion initiatives in a quest for what President Trump has described as “colorblindness.”

“I wasn’t born raising my hand saying, ‘I’m Asian American,’ it’s everyone else who kept reminding me I’m Asian American. The same thing happens in the Latinx community, the same thing happens in the Black community. We’re reminded that we’re minorities, that we are different somehow,” he said. “The problem is it has never been colorblind, so for Trump to try to whitewash this stuff is extremely harmful to our community and the progress we have made.”

Liu said he hopes to see the event evolve to become something that individuals of all backgrounds attend, similar to Caucus Weekend.