Our Platform

We believe that through our shared platform we can achieve equity for Massachusetts’ working class, immigrant, Asian and Pacific Islander, and broader BIPOC communities.

2026 Advocacy Agenda

APIs CAN’s advocacy agenda for the 2026 legislative session is driven by our coalition members to support and advocate for issues and programs that advance immigrant, racial, and economic justice by investing in our working class communities. 

Our agenda priorities are rooted in the long term goal of a Massachusetts Commonwealth where Asian/Pacific Islanders, and all Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, are given the tools and resources we need to thrive, including safe communities which keep our immigrant communities safe, access to housing, language justice, and data equity, where we define our narrative rooted in pan-Asian unity and equity.

Immigrant Justice

Multiple bills have been presented at the Massachusetts State House to address the ongoing violence against immigrant communities and to ensure legal protection to immigrants, and allies, as the federal government continues to use escalatory tactics. APIs CAN has closely monitored these bills and we have identified core components we know will protect our immigrant communities and safeguard our state as we continue to navigate this unprecedented period. We advocate strong immigrant protections for the Commonwealth must include the following:

  • No information and resource sharing:

    • Prohibit law enforcement from sharing information with ICE, including about someone's release from custody, including someone’s release from custody. 

    • Additionally, state and local police resources cannot be used for immigration enforcement and Stop arrests and detentions in sensitive locations

    • End and ban arrests in sensitive locations, including in or nearby courthouses, childcare centers, hospitals, places of worship, and schools. 

  • No more detention facility contracts and agreements:

    • Ban all current and future cooperation agreements with ICE, including agreements for state and local police to arrest, transfer, or house people for immigration enforcement purposes

  • End out of state transfers and protect detainee’s rights:

    • Stop transfers of detained individuals from Massachusetts to outside of the state. 

  • Other provisions: 

    • Additionally, proactively allow parents to appoint a guardian to care for their children if they are detained. 

    • Prohibit other states’ from sending National Guard to Massachusetts without the Governor’s consent.

Additionally, APIs CAN is in full support of renewing FY26 budget line item 4003-0124 Immigration Legal Assistance Fund in the upcoming FY27 budget, expanding access to allregardless of criminal history and including support for TPS holders. This fund provided $5.075 million dollars in funding for legal aid services for individuals in Massachusetts needing immigration legal assistance.

Housing Justice

APIs CAN believes that housing should be a human right and Massachusetts should work towards housing for all. We call for legislation protecting tenant rights, especially lifting the ban on rent control. At the same time we call for preservation of affordable housing and increase in funding for affordable housing that prioritizes permanent affordable housing and taking housing out of the speculative market.  We need all of the following proposed policies to be working together to ensure the economic and social stability of all AAPI communities.

  • An Act enabling cities and towns to stabilize rents and protect tenants (H.2328/S.1447), Senator Pat Jehlen, Representative Sam Montaño and Representative David Rogers 

  • An Act to Guarantee a Tenant’s First Right of Refusal (TOPA) (H.1544/S.998), Senator Pat Jehlen, Representative Jay Livingstone and Representative Rob Consalvo

  • 2026 Rent Control Ballot Initiative: Homes for All campaign

Civil Rights

APIs CAN is committed to all-year civic engagement and civil rights education to actively engage all AAPIs, regardless of immigration or citizenship status, in the democratic process. This includes comprehensively and accurately teaching the diversity of histories and peoples that helped form the United States and honoring AAPI civil rights leaders in Massachusetts.

  • An Act to promote comprehensive and inclusive curriculum in schools (H.655/S.371), Senator Adam Gomez, Representative Tram Nguyen and Representative Sam Montaño

  • An Act designating January 30 of each year as Fred Korematsu Day of Civil Liberties and the Constitution in Massachusetts (H.3427/S.2132), Senator Jamie Eldridge, Representative Erika Uyterhoeven

Language Justice

APIs CAN believes that to be an equitable and representative democracy, we must center language access in order to have a truly participatory government. We are championing language access for the most commonly spoken AAPI languages in Massachusetts in all areas of civic life.

  • An Act relative to the training, assessment, and assignment of qualified school interpreters in educational settings (H.520/S.320), Senator Brendan Crighton and Representative Antonio Cabral

Data Equity

Building on our success championing the 2023 Data Equity Bill, equitable data policy remains a core tenet for APIs CAN. We continue this work because stark disparities persist across BIPOC and AAPI communities, and weak privacy regulations are actively harming immigrant populations while eroding trust across Massachusetts.

  • An Act establishing the Massachusetts Data Privacy Act (H.4746/S.2619), Joint Committee on Advanced Information Technology, the Internet and Cybersecurity 

  • “Our communities have always known what we need to thrive. This agenda reflects the real conditions facing AAPI and BIPOC communities—and a path forward built through solidarity and collective action.”

    Jaya Savita, Executive Director of APIs CAN

  • "Asian American organizations from across Massachusetts have united under a historic advocacy agenda. AARW urges lawmakers on Beacon Hill to act decisively on our collective call for legislative action.”

    Nicole Eigbrett, Co-Executive Director of the Asian American Resource Workshop (AARW) and Co-Chair of the APIs CAN Steering Committee.

  • “ACDC recognizes the importance of standing together with our fellow Asian American grassroots community to advocate for state resources and legislation that protect our communities, especially during this time when many of these rights are under assault at the federal level.”

    Angie Liou, Executive Director, Asian CDC

  • "To achieve true economic success and social well-being for immigrant families BCNC serves, we believe in advancing immigrant justice, housing stability, civil rights, language access, and equitable data—because only when every voice is heard and every family is protected can all of our communities truly thrive.”

    Ben Hires, CEO, BCNC and Co-Chair of the APIs CAN Steering Committee

  • "The agenda speaks to the heart of what it means to build a Commonwealth that truly embraces inclusion, celebrates diversity, and ensures everyone has the opportunity to thrive."

    Karen Chen, Executive Director, Chinese Progressive Association