November 14: From Tokyo Rose to the China Initiative: Espionage and AAPIs

Asian Americans have long been accused of spying for foreign countries and engaging in acts of treason. In 1949, Iva Toguri D’Aquino was tried for treason in San Francisco—as the infamous “Tokyo Rose.” Years later, she was pardoned. In 1999, Dr. Wen Ho Lee, a scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory, was arrested and accused of being a spy who had given U.S. nuclear secrets to China. Although he eventually pleaded guilty to one count of mishandling national defense information (after spending 278 days in confinement under harsh conditions), the sentencing judge apologized to him on behalf of the United States.
More recently, during the China Initiative, the government arrested individuals of Asian descent with great fanfare, only to eventually drop or drastically reduce the charges in many of the cases. When the end of the “China Initiative” was announced in 2022, there was some skepticism that it was truly over, skepticism that was shown to be justified earlier this year as some members of Congress sought to revive it. 

Will the China Initiative now be revived?
The Center on Asian Americans and the Law at Fordham Law School will explore the issues presented by the government's prosecution over the years of Asian Americans for espionage and treason at its Third Annual Fall Symposium. We will first examine several historic cases and follow with a panel discussion on the government's more recent actions.
Title:
From Tokyo Rose to the China Initiative: Espionage and AAPIs
Date/Time:
Thursday, November 14, 2024
6PM Eastern Time
Register Now!
Speakers:

• Speakers Hon. Denny Chin, Senior Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit Co-Director, Center on Asian Americans and the Law Lawrence W. Pierce Distinguished Jurist in Residence, Fordham Law School
• Professor Thomas Lee, Co-Director, Center on Asian Americans and the Law Leitner Family Professor of International Law, Fordham Law School
• Dr. Gang Chen, Carl Richard Soderberg Professor of Power Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• Joanna YangQing Derman, Director, Anti-Profiling, Civil Rights and National Security Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC
• Brian A. Sun, Partner, Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP

By:
Fordham Law School's Center on Asian Americans and the Law is a first-of-its-kind institution dedicated to educating students, lawyers, and the public about legal issues of importance to AAPIs and others. The Center seeks to advance research and scholarship on such issues and works to advance the cause of justice for all.
Credit:
1 Diversity, Inclusion, and Elimination of Bias CLE credit is approved in accordance with New York and New Jersey CLE requirements. In many other jurisdictions, you may be able to self-apply for credit.

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