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CAPAC Commends President Obama for Nominating Miranda Du and Promoting Judicial Diversity

August 2, 2011

CAPAC Commends President Obama for Nominating Miranda Du and Promoting Judicial Diversity

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Rep. Judy Chu (CA-32), Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), commended President Obama for promoting diversity in the federal judiciary by nominating Miranda Du for the U.S. District Court of the District of Nevada. If confirmed, Du would be the first Asian Pacific American Article III judge in the history of Nevada, a state where Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders make up nearly 9 percent of the total population.

“Over the past two years alone, President Obama has doubled the number of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) serving as Article III Judges from 7 to 14, including the only current AAPI appellate court judge in the country,” said Congresswoman Chu. “Unfortunately, we are still dramatically underrepresented. While Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) make up 6 percent of the total U.S. population, we only account for 1.6 percent of the nation’s federal judges. Miranda Du’s nomination is significant for the AAPI community in Nevada and nationwide, and we thank the President for his commitment to promoting diverse candidates to the federal bench.”

Miranda Mai Du was born in Vietnam and left the country with her parents, two siblings and extended family by boat when she was eight years old.  After spending a year in two refugee camps in Malaysia, she and her relatives were sponsored to come to the United States by a family in Winfield, Alabama.  Miranda’s father worked in a dairy farm until the family eventually moved to Oakland, California, where she attended junior high and high school.  Miranda earned her Bachelor’s degree in history and economics at the University of California, Davis, and earned her J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley. After law school, she moved to Nevada to join her firm, McDonald Carano Wilson LLP, where she became a partner and currently serves as the chairperson of her firm’s Employment & Labor Law Practice Group.  Ms. Du and her husband, Chuck Martin, are actively involved in the Reno running community and frequently volunteer at local racing events. 

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The Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) is comprised of Members of Congress of Asian and Pacific Islander descent and members who have a strong dedication to promoting the well-being of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. Currently Chaired by Congresswoman Judy Chu, CAPAC has been addressing the needs of the AAPI community in all areas of American life since it was founded in 1994.