The Massachusetts chapter of the Indian American Forum for Political Education celebrated Asian American and Pacific   Heritage Month with an event on May 21 at the Burlington Marriott hotel in Burlington, MA.  Governor Deval Patrick was the chief guest.  Nearly 200 people attended the event.  

Following a welcome by Dr. Manju Sheth, Saman Salim, a former IAFPE intern, described her experiences at the State House. Mr. Sushil Tuli, President of Leader Bank, took the stage and introduced the Chief Guest, Governor Deval Patrick who then addressed the audience. Drs. Manju Sheth and Sapna Aggarwal served as co-emcees for the evening.

Gov. Patrick was very appreciative of the contributions that the Indian American community has made in various fields and for its business and entrepreneurial efforts. He said that Massachusetts is in a strong economic position and that the contributions of Indian Americans have played their part in this. "We have come out of the recession faster than most states," said Gov. Patrick.

Governor Patrick believes that it is very important to have different voices from the communities that make up Massachusetts be heard in the political and institutional process that runs the state. He told the political forum and the Indian American community that their efforts were very important in this regard. "Your voice matters. Your inclusion matters," he said. Deval Patrick answered several questions from the group. He suggested that he would be taking a delegation to India at some point before his present term is over.  

The event also recognized Indian Americans for contributions to the state. Those recognized included:

* Dr. Anant Agarwal -  Education
* Dr.  Desh Deshpande — Innovation & Social Entrepreneurship
* Dr. Pradeep Shukla — Fine Arts & Indian Heritage
* Ranjani Saigal — Fine Arts & Indian Heritage
* Judge Sabita Singh — Law
* Sorboni Banerjee — Communications & Media
* Meghna Chakrbarti — Communications & Media
* Dr. Sahdev Passey — Medicine
* Upendra Mishra — Community Impact
* Vinit Nijhawan — Entrepreneurship & Technology
* Saheli — Social Impact
* Dr. Subra Suresh — Government & Science

The event also launched the group's annual Summer Political Internship program, which is now in its 12th year. The goal of the IAFPE's Summer Political Internship program is to develop young Indian American leaders for service in our communities, the United States of America and the world at large and to create an engaged Indian American community that is aware of its rights and sensitive to its responsibilities. The program provides local college students with a unique opportunity to learn first-hand about the political process and what it takes to get involved.

The interns will spend between six and 10 weeks working in the office of a congressman or senator at the state or federal level, at a non-government agency or for political parties. Past interns have worked at the Office of the Attorney General, the White House, Congress, the State House, the Indian Embassy and in various governmental agencies such as the Department of Energy. A limited number of interns will be given a stipend. Stipends will be awarded to those interns who demonstrate exemplary performance in their internships.

The Indian American Forum for Political Education is the oldest and largest Indian American organization for political education in the country and is nationally recognized for its work in political empowerment process. The forum, established in 1982, has 22 state chapters across the nation. It has helped educate the Indian American community to participate as full partners in American democracy.

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