The Asian/ Pacific-American Council of Georgia (APAC) celebrated 22 years of existence at its annual banquet held at the Holiday Inn in Decatur recently. May is designated the Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month each year. Fourteen member organizations and other supporting organizations participated in the gala event that included fashion shows, cultural programs and the awarding of scholarships to deserving students. Congressman Hank Johnson was the guest of honor.

APAC president, Varinee Sangmalee, in her welcome address, said she looked forward to the day when all Asian Americans would help each other as one big family.

Congressman Johnson said it was wonderful to see so many organizations come together. There are 200,000 Asian Americans and 6000 Pacific Islanders in Atlanta according to the 2004 census, he revealed. The communities continue to make great contributions to the economy, he added.

“We need a fair, practical immigration policy that takes into consideration economic realities,” he said. “(For instance) There should be more opportunities for immigrants to learn English. We need to be more committed to help immigrants assimilate into American society from a psychological standpoint,” he said.

Dr. Josephine Tan, who is in charge of Asian American affairs for Georgia Power spoke briefly on the topic, “Who are we?” Asians have made a mark in all walk of lives, she said.
“Asian/Pacific influence has permeated mainstream American fashion, movies and culture. Asian Americans are achievers not only in academics, but also in Science and the Arts.”

Dr. Tan also called on several past presidents, including India American Cultural Association’s Dr. Narsi Narasimhan to speak on the topic, “who are we?”

Subash Razdan of the Asian American Chamber of Commerce announced that past president Giriraj Rao, a prominent member of the Indian American community and executive director of the Gandhi Foundation of USA, had won the 2007 Governor’s Award in the Humanities.
“We are blamed for not identifying with the mainstream,” he said. “We should assimilate more.” He added that APAC has been a unifying force in Georgia.

The evening began with fashion shows by Jane Choi and Moon Paik of J. Paik fashions. Female models sashayed down the ramp in elegant, classic, custom made couture. They were followed by tiny tots in eco-friendly outfits. The fashion show was sponsored by Team Spirit Realty.

The glamorous Rachel Kim of Channel 2 Action News was the emcee for the evening. Other guests included India Tribune publisher Prashant Shah, Tony Escandari of the Tuscany Group, John Kim of Team Spirit Realty and the Philippine honorary consul general Raoul “Ray” Donato.


The Most Outstanding Student awards were presented by past presidents Bala Pant and Dr.Narsi Narasimhan, following which service awards were presented by president Sangmalee.

The evening ended with colorful cultural presentations that included the Thai classical dance, Indonesian music, Indian dance, Korean traditional dance, Nepalese dance, Filipino folk dance, Malaysian dance, singing by Chinese American children and a Lao classical dance.