A Conversation with Frank Wu
Event Recap
Over 100 guests attended “A Conversation with Frank Wu: Asian Americans and the Law”, which was
held at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel, on Tuesday, September 16, 2014. The event was co-hosted by
Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Los Angeles (AAAJ-LA), Center for Asian Americans United for Self
Empowerment (CAUSE), and the Committee of 100 (C100). Chancellor and Dean of UC Hastings Law
School, Frank H. Wu, covered topics including the law and civic engagement, Asian American activism,
and the value of a legal education. Brian Sun, Partner, Jones Day, moderated the discussion.
(Stewart Kwoh, Executive Director, AAAJ-LA)
Stewart Kwoh, Executive Director of AAAJ-LA, presented our opening remarks and thanked the
individuals involved with the event. Charlie Woo, Board Chair of CAUSE, emceed the event and
introduced the speaker and moderator.
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(Frank Wu, Chancellor & Dean, UC Hastings College, speaking to a packed room.)
There were 101 guests in attendance, and over two-thirds of the audience was comprised of individuals
with a legal background.
Law firms represented include:
 Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP
 Kauffman Legal
 Pepper Hamilton LLP
 Lee Tran & Liang LLP
Also in attendance were representatives of table sponsors:
Corporate Sponsorship ($500)
 Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP
 Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
Community Sponsorship ($300)
 Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Los Angeles
 Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Los Angeles
 Southern California Chinese Lawyers Association
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Notable guests included:
 Holly Chang, Interim Executive Director of Committee of 100
 Lily Lee Chen, Committee of 100, Former Mayor of Monterey Park
 Stewart Kwoh, Committee of 100
 Judge Ronald S.W. Lew, U.S. District Court Judge for the Central District of California in the
Ninth Circuit
 Judge Casimiro Tolentino, Former Administrative Law Judge of the State of California
 Charlie Woo, Committee of 100
The event was facilitated by:
 9 staff and volunteers
o 3 CAUSE staff
o 1 AAAJ-LA staff
o 2 C100 staff
o 3 CAUSE volunteers
**No labor charges were incurred for program planning and execution.
(Brian Sun, Partner, Jones Day, asking a question to Frank Wu, Chancellor & Dean, UC Hastings College.)
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(Frank Wu, Chancellor & Dean, UC Hastings College)
Chancellor & Dean Wu shared his experiences growing up as a Chinese American in Detroit, what led
him to pursue a career in law, and how a legal profession can be used to empower the Asian American
community. At the end of the discussion, there was a Q&A session for audience members. Chancellor &
Dean Wu answered questions regarding his views on the current status of Asian Americans in politics,
the recent debate over SCA-5, and how the group can move forward in the future.
Some notable quotes from the night included:
On Vincent Chin “This Vincent Chin case captures everything about the Asian American experiences. It captures
being mistaken - Chinese for Japanese. It captures foreign - being not American. It captures the
resentment. It captures an Asian American getting drunk as not in his place. It is about the
model minority myth. It is about Asian American success. It is about the perpetual foreigner
syndrome... The death of one man was the birth of the Asian American."
On Asian American Activism "We don’t do enough to support our friends and allies who are African American, Hispanic, Arab
American, Jewish, Gay, Workers. If you don’t march in their march, they aint going to march in
your march. Even if Asian Americans banded together, we are still a minority. It’s only by
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building bridges and connecting to other groups and building a majority, can you win office and
change the world."
On legal education "Law is changing in a way that favors Asian Americans, and it is changing in a way that calls on
people with a different skill-set than before."
(Left to Right: Holly Chang, Brian Sun, Charlie Woo, Frank Wu)
After the event, we interviewed a few attendees to ask how they felt about the event. They provided
positive feedback and expressed their appreciation for Chancellor & Dean Wu:
● “My first reaction of the speaker was his passion for Asian Americans and his willingness to
speak out about them. I think that we need that leadership in this community.” - Holly Chang,
Executive Director of Committee of 100
● “It is always wonderful to hear him talk about the importance of participation… We can’t neglect
the concept of political community.” - Victor King, General Counsel of California State University
of Los Angeles
● “I think one of the major takeaways that I learned from this evening is, that as the Asian
American community we are constantly evolving and it is an ever growing process.” - Kenny
Yee, Member of CAUSE Board of Directors
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