Call For Papers – Special Issue: Inflection Point 2020: Coronavirus, Census and Elections for AAPIs?

The year 2020 will reshape the future landscape of the United States and the world. As a watershed year in which three major events occur: the coronavirus pandemic, decennial census, and a presidential election. The convergence of these three could bring about wildly different outcomes that it represents an inflection point for our social, economic, health and political future. Issues at stake include fair political representation, faith in political institutions, affordable health care, protection of civil liberties, equitable economic recovery and immigrant rights. AAPI Nexus Journal asks what are the implications for the next ten to twenty years? We invite authors to share original research, resource papers, and informed opinion essays offering a perspective of how the coronavirus, census, presidential election or the interaction among the three will impact Asian Pacific America.

The unknown cure for COVID-19 has resulted in the implementation of stay at home directives and the shuttering of social and economic life. In the midst of this, the Census Bureau has taken on the mandatory task of enumerating the population for the decennial census. Given the conditions, the census undercount will likely be dramatic. Since approximately one in five Asian Americans and one in three Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders live in hard-to-count areas, their representation and federal funding for the next decade will be at stake. In addition, primary elections to decide the Democratic nominee for president have had to continue. States attempted to implement new voting procedures to ensure social distancing but the untested procedures have resulted in major concerns of voter suppression in communities of color. Coming into such a high relief of what will take place in one year, the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the structural inequity that is generations’ old.

AAPI Nexus Journal seeks submissions that enable readers to look at issues through multi- disciplinary and comparative lenses. Our objective is to share information and insights to enhance the ability to take action in the areas of advocacy, strategic planning, policy development and programming. We encourage paper submissions authored by, and/or feature the perspectives of community advocates and leaders, policymakers, foundation professionals, students, researchers, and others involved in advancing policies, services, and activism.

An illustrative list of the topics that could be covered for this issue include:

• Racism and health equity
• AAPI healthcare workforce
• Online hate speech
• Public charge, paid leave, and other benefits
• CARES Act’s impact on communities of color
• Discrimination in lending, credit, and post-COVID19 recovery
• Racialization of COVID-19 and ensuing racial tensions
• Sanctuary cities
• Census response rates
• Trust in the federal and local government
• Citizenship
• Voter suppression and disenfranchisement
• Voting by mail
• Language barriers

AAPI Nexus solicits three types of papers: original research article, practitioner essay, and resource paper. Given the unusual urgency of the pandemic, we plan for a rapid turnaround issue. Articles will be published as an open access online edition and will be released on a rolling basis starting in Fall of 2020.

Manuscript deadline is Monday, June 15, 2020 but we welcome and encourage earlier submissions. For submission guidelines, please visit: http://www.aapinexus.org/journal/submission-guidelinesstylesheets/.

Questions about this special edition can be addressed to the Managing Editor, Melany De La Cruz-Viesca at: nexus@aasc.ucla.edu

AAPI Nexus is a peer-reviewed, national journal published by UCLA’s Asian American Studies Center focusing on policies, practices and community research to benefit the nation’s burgeoning Asian American and Pacific Islander communities. The journal’s mission is to facilitate an exchange of ideas and research findings that strengthens the efforts through policy and practice to tackle the pressing societal problems facing AAPI communities. The table of contents and editors’ notes can be found at:

http://www.aapinexus.org/category/table-of-contents/
http://www.aapinexus.org/category/editors-notes/