Todd Shulte of FWD.us, Billy Lawless of the Chicago Celts for Immigration Reform, and James Zogby of the Arab American Institute stressed the importance of recognizing and appreciating the sacrifices of those who immigrated into the U.S. made in their pursuit of a better life and shared their own immigration stories. Allison Jarus from the office of Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (Polish/Ukrainian origin), and representatives of the American Polish Advisory Council, Hungarian American Congress and the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America highlighted the relationship all communities have had in Ohio.
Around 170 ethnic leaders attended to listen to senior White House officials speak about immigration and foreign policy issues. Guests heard from: Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to President Obama, Cecilia Muñoz, the director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, Dr. Celeste A. Wallander, special assistant to the President and senior director of the Russia and Central Asia National Security Council, and Michael Carpenter, the special advisor to the Vice President for Europe and Eurasia. Ethnic leaders from the African, Arab, Irish, Polish, and Ukrainian communities participated in a panel and shared their own immigrant stories, sometimes at great difficulty.
UMD President Koloski had the opportunity to pose questions of the distinguished speakers. He commended the White House for hosting the second annual ethnic day and highlight immigrant communities by holding the event during Immigrant Heritage Month, which he urged the President to officially proclaim June as such month. (Since this press release was issued, President Obama issued a video statement to honor Immigrant Heritage Month). Following the remarks by Melissa Rogers, he thanked the Administration for their statement commemorating Orthodox Christmas, but noted that the Administration did not issue a statement for Orthodox Easter this year, which they did in previous years. He urged her office to ensure this is corrected in the future.
During the foreign policy briefing, Koloski requested more information on the U.S. policy of NATO’s open door policy for new members, and of postponing membership for prospective nations. He reminded the White House advisors of the 2008 NATO Bucharest Summit of 2008, where the door to Macedonia was blocked from receiving an invitation, and Georgia and Ukraine were prevented from getting NATO Membership Action Plans. Both Georgia and Ukraine faced hindering of their territorial integrity from Russia, and Macedonia is currently undergoing a political crisis. He urged the Obama Administration to change their policy of allowing Greece to jeopardize the future of Macedonia and the region.
The White House then hosted a lunch, and Very Reverend Father Branko Postolovski offered grace, thanked the White House Office of Public Engagement for organizing such a well-attended professional event, and prayed for greater dialogue among the different ethnic groups for the benefit of the United States.
June 1st reception sponsors included: Advisory Council for Bosnia and Herzegovina, Africa Diaspora Coalition, American Jewish Committee, American Polish Advisory Council, American Russian-Speaking Association for Civil & Human Rights, Arab American Institute, Armenian National Committee of America, Chicago Celts for Immigration Reform, Friends of the American Sikh Congressional Caucus, Greek American Teachers Federation Association, Hungarian American Coalition, League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), National Federation of Croatian Americans, Polish American Congress, Turkish Coalition of America, Turkish Heritage Organization, the Ukrainian Congress Committee of America, the United Macedonian Diaspora, and Welcome.us.
June 2nd White House Ethnic Day sponsors included: Africa Diaspora Coalition, American Center for a European Ukraine, American Polish Advisory Council, American Russian-Speaking Association for Civil & Human Rights, Arab American Institute, Armenian National Committee of America, Chicago Celts for Immigration Reform, Friends of the American Sikh Congressional Caucus, Hellenic American Leadership Council, Hungarian American Coalition, Polish American Congress, Serbian American Business Council, Turkish Heritage Organization, the United Macedonian Diaspora, and U.S. United with Ukraine Coalition.