Asian Americans for Equal Rights (AAER), born in September 2017 from the grassroots movements against MA House Bill 3361, is a non-profit organization headquartered in Massachusetts. Our mission is to serve Asian American community, promote civic engagement, and be the voice for the Asian American community.
Our board members and management team are also leaders in local communities across Massachusetts and the nation, including Andover, Belmont, Lexington, Sharon, Winchester, Northborough, Southborough, Westborough and more.
Contact Us
You may contact us at AsianAmericansForEqualRights@gmail.com.
For donations, please PayPal to the same email address.
Leadership
Dr. Shishan (Scott) Wang, President
Dr. Scott Wang is a research scientist with a Ph.D. in food science from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He is passionate about serving the community and had previously run for the Andover School Committee. In 2020, he ran for the State Representative in the 18th Essex District.
Dr. Wang lives in Andover with his wife and three children: a daughter who is attending Brandeis University and twin sons attending Andover High School.
In his spare time, Dr. Wang enjoys running. He is a Marathon runner and enjoys attending local race events.
Dr. Ye Zhang Pogue, Vice President
Dr. Pogue holds a Ph.D. in Social Policy from the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University. She is the recipient of the Barbara Wakefield Award in 2019 for her active community service and advocacy. In additional to her service at the AAER, Dr. Pogue is also a founding board member and secretary at the Chinese Americans of Massachusetts (CAMA).
Dr. Pogue devotes tremendous energy working with civil rights advocates in Massachusetts, Connecticut, California, Washington and other states on a range of issues in data disaggregation, equal rights and immigration. She is a passionate advocate for bridging differences through shared humanity.
Helen Yang, Vice President and Treasurer
Helen Yang is a founding board member of the AAER. A financial technology executive and entrepreneur, Helen volunteers extensively. She is also the founding member of Chinese American Association of Andover, CALex (Chinese Americans of Lexington) and CAMA (Chinese Americans of Massachusetts). She also serves on the board of the Lexington Lions Club.
Helen lives in Lexington with her husband Will and two teenage children. During her spare time, she enjoys hiking, yoga, listening to audio books, and spending time with family and friends.
Helen holds an MBA from MIT Sloan School of Management. Click here for her LinkedIn profile.
Dr. Nan Qiao, Board Member and Clerk
Dr. Nan Qiao is a health economist and health services researcher. Her research interests include cost-effectiveness analysis, gerontology, adolescent health, and health disparities.
Besides being the clerk of AAER, she also actively participates in and leads other DEI activities in the workplace.
In her free time, she enjoys traveling, learning about other cultures, watching movies, hiking, and cooking.
Zhong (Jason) Huang, Board Member and Director of IT and Social Media
Zhong is serving as the IT and Social Media Director for the AAER.