Driving out discrimination

It was quite an honor this week to be part of an effort to end discrimination in this country.

Last week the LPGA Tour announced a policy to require its players to speak English starting next year. While they claimed this was not racism, it is tough to imagine how else to interpret the policy. Consider the facts - the Tour consists of 121 foreign-born golfers, from 26 countries, with about 45 from South Korea; Asian players have won three of the four majors this year; the number one player in the world is from Mexico. So a policy clearly directed at limiting this prowess, from a sport with such a poor history on civil rights, only indicates one conclusion.

Here's the timeline:

Sunday, Yee Calls on LPGA to End Discriminatory Policy
州參議員余胤良呼籲「女子職業高爾夫球協會」廢止歧視政策

Wednesday, Civil Rights Organizations Condemn LPGA English Policy
民權團體譴責「女子職業高爾夫球協會」全英文政策

Thursday, Opposition Grows to LPGA Discrimination
抗議「女子職業高爾夫球協會」政策，各界批評輿論不斷

Friday, LPGA Rescinds Discriminatory Policy
「女子職業高爾夫球協會」取消歧視政策

Proudly, spending hours on the phone over the past week resulted in over 50 organizations joining this effort.

Here's the growing list: American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Applied Research Center, Asian American Bar Association, Asian American Coalition for Civil Rights, Asian American Justice Center (AAJC), Asian American Recovery Services, Asian American Women’s Alliance, Asian Americans for Civil Rights and Equality, Asian Americans for Community Involvement, Asian Law Alliance, Asian Pacific American Leadership Institute, Asian Pacific Bar Association of Silicon Valley, California Alliance for Retired Americans, California Commission on the Status of Women, California Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), California Immigrant Policy Center, California National Organization for Women (NOW), California Nurses Association, California Psychiatric Association, California Women Lawyers, Californians for Disability Rights, Cambodian American Resource Agency, Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA), Equality California, Filipino American Coalition, Filipino American Organization of San Jose State University, Filipino National History Society, Filipino Youth Coalition, Filipinos for Affirmative Action, Gray Panthers, International Children Assistance Network, Japanese American Citizens League (JACL), Japantown Community Congress of San Jose, Korean American Bar Association, Korean American Chamber of Commerce of Silicon Valley, Korean American Coalition, Korean American Community Services, Korean American Law Students Association, Korean American Professional Society, Korean American Society of Entrepreneurs, Koreatown Immigrant Workers Alliance (KIWA), Latino Issues Forum, Legal Aid Society – Employment Law Center, National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, National Center for Lesbian Rights, National Council of Asian Pacific Americans, National Korean American Service and Education Consortium (NAKASEC), Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), Organization for Justice and Equality, Sojourn to the Past – A Civil Rights Education Project, South Asian Bar Association, Southeast Asian Community Center, Vision New America, Vietnamese Voluntary Foundation, Vietnamese American Bar Association, Yee Fow Center for History, Culture, and Trade.

If you want to join this coalition, click here.