APALC Proposes Los Angeles Redistricting Plan

Recently, the Asian Pacific American Legal Center (APALC) submitted a citywide redistricting plan to LA’s City Council Redistricting Commission that would help keep Asian American neighborhoods intact and strengthen Asian American voices as the city looks to redraw its electoral lines. Because of how diverse the city is, I imagine that it’s not an easy task to try and accommodate as many communities as possible. APALC says that their proposal tries to balance the interests of the Asian American community and many other interests. One big feature of their plan is to mostly unite Koreatown into one district since its currently four, and also to keep whole Thai Town, Little Tokyo, Chinatown and Historic Filipinotown in their respective districts. “Our plan asks the commission to respect the federal Voting Rights Act, which requires that in certain circumstances racial groups make up a majority of a district, and to keep intact neighborhoods and communities sharing common social and economic interests.”