We at Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California lost a beloved board member and tireless civil rights advocate on April 3, 2022. Anjan Choudhury was our Board Governance Chair, a member of the Board Executive Committee, and a member of the Board of Directors since 2018.
Anjan was a partner at MTO, where he specialized in entertainment law. In addition to serving on Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California’s Board, he was on the Board of Directors of the South Asian Bar Association and ChangeLawyers. In 2016, Anjan was named one of NAPABA’s “Best Under 40” lawyers.
Anjan was an incredible legal mind, who, together with his colleagues at MTO, committed thousands of pro bono hours to fight for the rights of Asian Pacific Islanders within the courts. In 2019, MTO was presented with our Pro Bono Advisory Council’s Volunteer Recognition Award for the exceptional work of Anjan and his team in CAIR, et. al. v. L.A. Mayor, et. al. and CAIR, et. al. v. FEMA, et. al. Through this case, they challenged the City of Los Angeles’ and other federal agencies’ Countering Violent Extremism programs that resulted in unjust civil liberty violations against Muslim-Americans throughout the U.S. and in the City of Los Angeles. Last month, Anjan led the MTO team in filing an amicus brief to the 9th Circuit on behalf of the Asian Americans Advancing Justice affiliation in US v. Rodrigues-Barios, where he critiqued the court’s reliance on the plenary power doctrine, which has been rooted in racism to exclude Asian immigrants from the US, arguing that the plenary power doctrine should not be applied to criminal laws related to immigration status.
Paul Chan, Board Chair of Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California, shares, “Anjan was a leader within our organization and the broader community, who could always be counted on for his steady counsel and warm sense of humor. Our board is terribly saddened to lose such a valuable board member, passionate civil rights lawyer, and wonderful human being.”
“Anjan was a kind and brilliant board member,” states Connie Chung Joe, CEO of Asian Americans Advancing Justice Southern California. “He quickly became a confidante and valuable thought partner, as he was always willing to give his time and support to me and to our organization. He will be greatly missed.”
