Fighting Anti-Asian and Water Injustice w/ Josina Morita

(S4, EP 4)  Josina Morita is my special guest for this week's episode.  Josina is currently serving her elected role as Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District in Chicago and all of Cook County which in 2016, she became the first Asian-American to do so countywide.  She is also the founding chair of Asian American Leaders Caucus (AALC) in Illinois.  She discussed the water injustice and inequity issues that have harmed Chicago's marginalized communities and how places like Flint to Standing Rock are examples of the growing concerns of water safety in these communities nationwide.  She shared tips on how we can use best daily practices to combat environmental violence.  Josina reflected on the recent progress that Asian Americans in Illinois are making in politics, and what needs to be done to dismantle current barriers for Asians in politics and civic engagement.   For more on her work, please visit her FB page at www.facebook.com/josinamorita or at www.friendsofjosina.com

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Bio: 

Josina Wing Morita is a Commissioner of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District.  Elected in 2016, she is the first Asian American elected to a countywide board in Cook County—the second largest county in the country which also covers all of Chicago.  As an urban planner and policy advocate, Josina brings expertise in equity policy, land use, stormwater and regional planning.  She is the founding chair of the Asian American Leaders Caucus.  She sits on the National Blue Ribbon Commission for On-Site Non-Potable Water Systems and the bi-national Great Lakes Commission.  Josina’s human rights, racial justice and water justice work has been recognized locally and nationally.  In 2007, she was named one of the top 35 leaders under 35 fighting racism and poverty in Chicago by the Community Renewal Society. In 2013, she received the Emerging Leader Award from the Illinois Campaign for Political Reform and the Breaking Barriers Award from the Chicago Foundation for Women.  In 2016 she was named one of 50 Young Asian American Stars in Politics by Asian Fortune Magazine.  In 2017 she received the Spirit of the River Award and in 2019 she was named #22 of the 40 People Who Made a Difference in the Last 40 Years by Friends of the Chicago River. And in 2018 she was recognized as a National Water Hero by WaterNow. She holds a B.A. in Sociology and International Race Relations from Pitzer College and a Masters in Urban Planning and Public Policy from the University of Illinois at Chicago.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Season 4 is sponsored by Red Scarf Revolution (RSR).  RSR aims to bring awareness to the tragedies, atrocities and cultural destruction that the Cambodian people endured from 1975 to 1979 under the communist Khmer Rouge regime and how that period impacts us today.  With that awareness, Red Scarf Revolution advocates the silenced art, music, culture,  and language, with designs that incite the resiliency of the Cambodian people.  Visit their website at www.redscarfrevolution.com to check out their merch line and to learn more about their work, or follow their Instagram at red_scarf_revolution or on their Facebook.