Asian American Leadership
Forum for Youth
PANELISTS.
MARIKO HIROSE
International Refugee Assistance Project (IRAP)
Litigation Director
Mariko Hirose is the Litigation Director at IRAP, where she manages and engages in systemic impact litigation to protect refugees and others in humanitarian need. She previously worked as a civil rights litigator at the New York affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union, the national office of the American Civil Liberties Union, and Outten & Golden LLP. She has taught at the New York University School of Law and at the Fordham University School of Law. She is a graduate of Stanford Law School and Yale University.
DANIEL LEE
Asian AF
Producer and Co-Host
Dan Lee is an actor, writer, and comedian based in New York City. At the UCB Theatre he improvises on Harold Night and co-hosts the hit variety show Asian AF, which has been featured on NBC News, ABC News, The New York Times, LA Times, LA Weekly, ATTN, Splitsider, Gizmodo, and many more. He also creates videos on his own and with his comedy team Varejao.
JAMES HONG
Minkwon Center for Community Engagement
Executive Director
Mr. Hong oversees the MinKwon Center’s Civic Engagement Program as well as advocacy and community organizing efforts. He is a 2nd generation Korean American from Miami, Florida who joined the MinKwon Center in 2010. Prior to joining the MinKwon Center, James was a Senior Research Analyst at Market Dynamics Research Group, Synovate USA and Synovate Korea. James received his A.B. from Bowdoin College and his M.Div. from Princeton Theological Seminary.
AADHITHI PADMANABHAN
New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU)
Staff Attorney
Aadhithi Padmanabhan is a staff attorney at the New York Civil Liberties Union. She first joined the NYCLU in 2014 as a Skadden Fellow, focusing on defending the rights of farmworkers and immigrant New Yorkers. During law school, she participated in the Worker and Immigrant Rights Advocacy Clinic and the Iraqi Refugee Assistance Project.
