Was Biden the First Asian American President? Groundhog Day for the AAPI community.
By Romen Basu Borsellino | 04 Apr, 2025

Filipino judge walks Mayor Eric Adams, Belly Laughs heads to LA, and Janet Yang now rules Oscars

The fate of embattled New York Mayor Eric Adams who was facing charges of conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud, and other crimes, was ultimately determined this week by Federal Judge Dale Ho, the son of Filipino immigrants. Judge Ho ended up dismissing the charges“with prejudice,” which, while probably not Ho’s desired outcome, appeared to be his best available option. Here’s a layman’s breakdown of what that means:

- Joe Biden’s Department of Justice charged Adams with corruption.

- Donald Trump’s DOJ then dropped the charges…but lobbied the courts to dismiss the case “without prejudice” which means that the charges could be brought against Adams again in the future.

- Judge Ho likely wanted to try Adams but couldn’t. And while he likely thought that Adams was guilty, he opted to dismiss the charges “with prejudice” which means that they couldn’t be brought forth again in the future. Why? Because the Trump Administration’s ability to threaten Adams with possible charges in the future could effectively lead to blackmail, especially since Trump is demanding Adams carry out his immigration policies. 

- So Adams will walk free. 

Judge Ho was appointed by President Biden, who is personally responsible for 40% of all Asian-American lifetime judges who have ever been confirmed. Biden appointed more than double the number of any Asian Americans judges of any previous single President. Bill Clinton was famously referred to as our “First Black President” by novelist Toni Morrison. Does Joe Biden deserve the title of “First Asian President”? 

The first ever comedy and food festival celebrating Asian American culture is heading to Los Angeles this summer. Belly Laughs, which runs from July 12-13, is spread across 3 stages,and  features over 20 food and drink stalls and 30+ comics including Hasan Minhaj, Kumail Nanjiani, and Margaret Cho. Belly Laughs is a fine title but I will be referring to it as Cho-chella.

On Thursday, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (the people who give out Oscars) announced the creation of The Janet Yang Endowment to Celebrate and Preserve Asian and AAPI Filmmaking. Yang, who serves as President of the Academy, was the first ever Asian American to hold the position. According to the President of the Academy Museum, Amy Homma, who is also Asian American, the endowment will build upon their existing work of preservation, exhibition, and public programming.

Finally, it kind of feels like we’re still stuck in the year 2020, right? Like time just froze once the pandemic started. According to the AP, it may especially feel that way for the AAPI community, who continue to experience hate crimes in a way that many never experienced prior to 2020. 

According to a survey, taken in 2023, one-third of Asian Americans experienced an act of racism within the past year. And, mind you, this is before the recent immigration crackdowns, DEI repeals, and English-only mandates. I don’t remember how Bill Murray finally escaped the time loop he was stuck in in Groundhog Day, but we should probably study up and figure out how to get the hell out of 2020 sometime soon.