Discrimination is still an ugly reality in America. Whether it's in employment, housing or the service industry, Pakistani-Americans and other minorities in the US still have to deal with this kind of overt prejudice.

You can help other Pakistanis, especially those who have recently arrived in the US, learn how to stand up for their rights and fight against discrimination here.

Start off by organizing a seminar on this topic. Call a local anti-racism organization. Explain what you want to do and why. Also contact a civil rights lawyer who specializes in discrmination. Have these experts explain to the local Pakistani-American community what exactly discrimination is, what are some examples of it, what their rights are and what steps they can take if they are victims of discrimination. In addition, provide written information at the seminar about what resources are available to fight prejudice locally and nationally. Make sure a translator is also present at the seminar so that those who are not as familiar with English can benefit from the information as well.

But don't just stop at educating others about their rights. Become an unofficial advocate for local Paksitani-Americans who have suffered from discrimination and don't want to fight the battle alone. Here's what you can do:

1. Get the full story from the person who claims to be discriminated against. Find out exactly what happened, when, where and how. For example, what was the name of the cashier who they felt discriminated against them? What exactly did the landlord say when turning them down for an apartment? What kinds of questions did the job interviewer ask that made the interviewee suspect they were acting in a prejudiced manner?

Put all of this information down on paper in the form of a report. It does not have to be long or full of technical jargon. The simpler the better.

2. Contact your local anti-racism organization. Explain the case to them. If possible, fax them a copy of your report of the incident. See what they suggest to do and follow their advice.

Find out if they can intervene and contact the alleged perpetrator of the discrimination to get his or her side of the story. When an organization calls on behalf of the complainant, it is more likely that the alleged perpetrator will take the complaint seriously.

3. If however, the anti-racism agency is not effective or does not get involved, contact the person or company accused of discrimination to get their side of the story.

Try to speak directly to the person accused of discrmination. Explain who you are and what you are trying to find out. Don't worry if they brush you off or insult you. Note down the date you called, who you spoke to and their response.

4. If it's a business who committed discrimination, find out how to register a complaint with it (they probably have a department which deals with this). But don't stop there. Contact your local Better Business Bureau to complain as well. They have an online complaints process at www.bbb.org and offer mediation and arbitration services to resolve disputes.

If the individual accused is a landlord, contact the government office that deals with housing. Try to find out if your city has a housing rights committee (many big cities do) and what they can do about this case of housing discrimination.

5. After registering your complaint, find out exactly what the waiting time is to get an answer or resolution to the problem. If after the specified time there is no response from either the alleged offender or the groups which were intervening to help, follow up with them. If they give you the runaround, tell them quite clearly that you intend to deal with this case in a different way on your own.

7. At this point, get the support of your local Pakistani-American community. Have individuals write letters and make calls of complaint to the company or offender. If it's a business which is refusing to acknowledge the discrimination, have everyone boycott it. Encourage people from other ethnic groups to also boycott the store until it resolves this case of discrimination.

8. Alert the media. Nobody, especially a business, wants bad press. But inform the alleged perpetrator of discrimination before you do this. By threatening to go to the media, the offender may agree to give in to demands and offer to resolve the issue.

9. If the offender agrees to work out a settlement, don't be stubborn. Be willing to negotiate and mediate with the help of arbitrators who represent both sides if necessary.

10. Once the conflict is resolved, inform everyone who complained about and boycotted the business that a deal has been reached and that they should thank the company as well as go back to supporting it. In addition, thank them for their support in speaking out against discrimination.

If it's a landlord who has finally negotiated a settlement, thank them as well and try to build ties between them and the Pakistani-American community.

Date/Time Last Modified: 6/17/2002 3:47:56 PM

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