Erum Kidwai at AALDEF: Understanding Legal Advocacy in South Asian American Communities

South Asian American communities span across the United States, but they make up twenty-nine percent of the United States’ population. They have diverse linguistic, religious, and regional backgrounds, yet are often treated as a single bloc in policymaking, legal advocacy, and public services. This generalization leads to serious gaps in access and representation—gaps that organizations like the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) are working to address. AALDEF addresses a wide range of challenges South Asians face, from language justice to gender-based violence, immigration instability, and political underrepresentation. Kidwai’s organizing and legal advocacy work provides insights into both the strengths and challenges of South Asian community engagement in the United States today.

One of the most pressing issues South Asian organizations face is the language barrier. With so many South Asian languages spoken across different communities, the lack of multilingual services that provide aid in these languages can prevent individuals from receiving the support they need. This is particularly evident in legal contexts, where communication gaps can have serious consequences. Limited resources and high caseloads in legal service organizations often worsen the disconnect, leaving many without access to justice.

Cultural stigma within South Asian communities also presents a major challenge, especially around issues like gender-based violence. In many cases, survivors do not seek help until the situation becomes critical. The stigma associated with speaking out—especially against family members or community figures—combined with limited access to resources and organizations that can actually help, all delay intervention and limit the effectiveness of available support.

In many regions, South Asian communities remain underrepresented, especially at the local level. AALDEF has worked on such issues across the United States. In Michigan, for example, a Bengali-speaking community was not receiving critical information in their language, leaving them isolated from important public services and announcements. AALDEF was able to establish a system wherein the announcements were also in Bengali, bridging a vital gap in access. Similarly, in Nassau County, AALDEF worked to combat a gerrymandering case. Through organizing and legal strategies, the organization helped secure a redistricting outcome that recognized the area as an influence district. An influence district is one where a minority group does not make up the majority of the population but has enough numbers to influence politics. Being recognized as an influence district allowed South Asians to gain representation and access political rights and resources.

Erum Kidwai’s description of AALDEF’s work reveals how targeted and culturally mindful legal advocacy can expose and solve long-standing inequalities within and beyond South Asian American communities. By pushing for language access, fighting gerrymandering, challenging societal stigmas, and addressing the failures of immigration policy, Kidwai and AALDEF play key roles in empowering the South Asian community. Their efforts highlight the importance of such organizations and the need for continued investment and consideration for multilingual, community-led organizing frameworks.