Indo-American Community Federation

Unity Dinner: Immigration Must Be National Priority
2015-03-27
Milpitas, Calif. – Immigration must be a top priority to ensure the continued growth of the U.S. economy, said Russell Hancock, president and CEO of Joint Venture Silicon Valley, on the sidelines of the 14 annual Unity Dinner, held Mar. 20 at the India Community Center.
“We’re fooling ourselves by thinking we can build fences to protect our national interests,” Hancock – the keynote speaker at the evening event founded by Indian American Jeevan Zutshi – told IndiaWest. He advocated for an expansion of the H-1B skilled temporary worker program, but declined to comment on a new initiative which would allot work authorization to the spouses of H-1B workers.
H-4 visa holders – spouses of H-1B workers who are often as skilled as their partners – were previously denied work authorization. But U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services unveiled a new initiative Feb. 24 that would allow some H-4 visa holders to work. Indian spouses make up the majority of H-4 residents: 180,000 people will be eligible in the rst year, and 55,000 will become eligible in successive years.
The annual Unity Dinner, organized by the Indo American Community Federation, brought together local, state and national elected leaders and Indian American community and business leaders. Rep. Mike Honda, D-Calif., California state Treasurer John Chiang; State Controller Betty Yee; and California state Assembly members Bill Quirk, Kansen Chu and Evan Low were among the many politicians who attended the event.
Fremont Mayor Bill Harrison, Cupertino Mayor Rod Sinks and Milpitas Mayor Jose Esteves also attended the dinner, along with council members from several local cities.
In his keynote address, Hancock acknowledged the vast contributions of immigrant workers – particularly Indian Americans – to the growth of the San Francisco Bay Area’s Silicon Valley. “Any technology company here is like the United Nations. You’ve got people from all over the world feverishly working to attain a common goal.”
“The Silicon Valley is not an American phenomenon. It was built by people from everywhere, working on a path to success,” said Hancock, the inaugural director of Stanford University’s Shorenstein Forum for Asia-Pacic Studies.
“Most countries have a race, religion or tribe that binds them together. What is unique about the U.S. is the lack of tribe that binds us. This country was based on the glue of nationhood, liberty, justice and opportunity,” said Hancock, noting that in 1776, when America’s leaders were founding a democracy – including an elected president and Congress – most countries were still ruled by monarchies. “Two hundred and fty years later, only the American institutions remain,” he said.
Venkatesan Ashok, India’s new consul general in San Francisco, also spoke about the impact of the co-mingling of cultures in his keynote address. “India is the best example of diversity compared to anywhere in the world,” he said, noting the numerous cultural communities, languages and religions that make up the world’s largest democracy.
“From that community, you have come to this community, another shining example of diversity,” said Ashok, who took ofce in November 2014 when former consul general N. Parthasarathi retired from public service and returned home to Bangalore.
Ashok spoke about a new directive issued by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in which all Indian consulates and embassies throughout the world will celebrate the rst International Yoga Day. The United Nations declared the date after Modi’s address to the General Assembly, urging nations to adopt the practice with the aim of fostering world peace.
In San Francisco, the Indian Consulate has issued an open invitation to people “from the length and breadth of California,” to participate in a day-long celebration of yoga at the Palace of Fine Arts. Per capita, non-Indians do more yoga daily than Indians, noted the affable diplomat, adding: “We will be teaching ourselves the value of something that many people here already know.”
Ashok also addressed the troublesome visa process, noting that the consulate is holding “visa camps” throughout the Bay Area, in Fresno, Calif., and Seattle, Wash., to help people through the often tortuous process of applying for an Indian visa.
Former Cupertino, Calif., Mayor Gilbert Wong – who now serves on the city council – told IndiaWest that the Silicon Valley township recently established a sister-city relationship with Bhubaneswar and hopes to promote cultural and educational partnerships. Cupertino currently has sister-city relationships with Hsinchu, Taiwan; Toyokawa, Japan; and Copertino, Italy. Initially, both cities will send six students over to experience the culture of each country.
Jeevan Zutshi, founder of the IACF, told India-West that the event had raised more than $5,000 to support the Amit Zutshi Foundation. The foundation was created in 2008, he said, after Zutshi’s son abruptly died that March from the use of over-the-counter health supplements. Jeevan Zutshi has written a book about the tragedy – “The Last Smile” – which has been made into a featurelength lm.
In the non-documentary lm directed by Shankey Srinivasan, Keith Stevenson plays Kapil, a father searching for clues as to what killed his son. Danny Arroyo plays a detective who helps Kapil navigate the complex process of how drug manufacturers market their goods to a primarily-younger demographic concerned with body image.
“The Last Smile” is scheduled to be released this May, said Zutshi.

IACF-US Welcomes GOPIO SV Chapter and raise awareness for Creating Jobs in CA at the 2012 Unity Dinner
2012-03-30
30 March 2012
IACF-US Welcomes GOPIO SV Chapter and raise awareness for Creating Jobs in CA at the 2012 Unity Dinner

Blindly Seeing the World as One: Jeevan Zutshi
2012-02-08
Blindly Seeing the World as One
Jeevan Zutshi
By Diana Rohini Lavigne
Jeevan Zutshi founded the Indo-American Community Federation (IACF-USA), a non-prot, in 1994 to pave the way for Indo-Americans to get involved in mainstream activities. IACF helps build Indo-U.S. relations through educating law makers, organizing international seminars and keeping an open dialogue with public ofcials in the U.S. and in India.
After 9/11, things changed in the United States. He created an annual Unity Dinner in association with his son, Rahul Zutshi, to help foster unity and understanding among a diverse number of community groups and leaders. The Unity Dinner has grown from a small event to a large-scale event and grabs the attention of some high prole members of Congress and the Senate as well as other government bodies.
Jeevan Zutshi’s background is as a civil engineer, a teacher and a real estate broker. This jack of all trades hails from the strife torn state of Kashmir and has fought for the human rights and rehabilitation of Kashmiris in India, who were forced to ee their homes as a result of terrorism since 1990.
“Not only did IACF-USA bring other Indo-American factions and organizations together to support mainstream involvement but also brought together other diverse community leaders and organizations along with a host of policy makers and public ofcials,” explains Zutshi. “I wish I could make people color blind and remove the word ‘hate’ from the dictionary replacing it with compassion and love.”
So it shouldn’t shock readers that these two world leaders are his biggest inuences; Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King. Both fought for human rights and spread the message of love and harmony across the globe and have inspired Jeevan in his work.
When asked what his special skill is, Jeevan said he has an uncanny way of recognizing good people and puts his effort towards showing them their value to him. Surrounding himself with like-minded good people is one skill that everyone should learn from this grand master of diversity and community.

IACF Celebrates Unity with Awards and awareness - Mar 26, 2010, shehjar
2010-03-26
26 March 2010
IACF Celebrates Unity with Awards and awareness – Mar 26, 2010, shehjar

Celebrating Diversity: IACF Unity Dinner (2007) 6th unity dinner
2007-04-24

Sixth Unity Dinner a big draw (2007) 6th unity dinner
2007-04-06
6 April 2007
Sixth Unity Dinner a big draw (2007) 6th unity dinner

Tri-city who's who at glittering IACF dinner 2007, 6th annual dinner
2007-04-03
03 April 2007
Tri-city who’s who at glittering IACF dinner 2007, 6th annual dinner

Unity Dinner 2006 - a Sellout Event (5th annual dinner)
2006-04-07
7 April 2006
Unity Dinner 2006 – a Sellout Event (5th annual dinner)

Unity Dinner 2005 Press Coverage by India West Newspaper
2005-01-24
24 January 2005
Unity Dinner 2005 Press Coverage by India West Newspaper

Indo-American Community Federation, kick-off, Unity Dinner 2004 (3th annual dinner)
2004-12-10
10 December 2004
Indo-American Community Federation, kick-off, Unity Dinner 2004 (3th annual dinner)

Pallone Hosts Hearing on Plight of Kashmiri Pandits (2003)
2003-11-14
14 November 2003
Pallone Hosts Hearing on Plight of Kashmiri Pandits (2003)

Dinner for Unity on 24th January 2003 - A Report by India Currents December 2, 2002
2003-01-24
24 January 2003
Dinner for Unity on 24th January 2003 – A Report by India Currents December 2, 2002

Second Unity Dinner in California Focuses on Peace and Harmony (2nd Unity Dinner)
2003-01-24
24 January 2003
Second Unity Dinner in California Focuses on Peace and Harmony (2nd Unity Dinner)

Unity Dinner 2002 on 25th Jan' 2002 - The Indo-American Community Federation's first annual event Unity Dinner 2002 with Live musical entertainment by Melody Queen Alka Bhatnagar
2002-01-21 08:00 - 17:00 UTC
21 January 2002
Unity Dinner 2002 on 25th Jan’ 2002 – The Indo-American Community Federation’s first annual event Unity Dinner 2002 with Live musical entertainment by Melody Queen Alka Bhatnagar
