Speaker Series
They See Blue cordially invites you to join our Blue Informational Talks (BITS) with Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi.
​
Topic: Gun Violence, Gun Sense, and the South Asian American Community
Date: Sunday, Nov 21, 2021 3:00 to 4:00PM PST (6:00 to 7:00PM EST)
Format: Online via Zoom (Click here to join)
Speaker: Raja Krishnamoorthi - US Congressman Illinois 8th District
​
Event open to non-members. Please invite friends, family and neighbors.
Speaker Bio:
US Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi represents the 8th District of Illinois. He serves on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, the Committee on Oversight and Reform and as Chairman of its Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy, Vice-Chair of the LGBTQ+ Equality Caucus, Co-Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus Immigration Task Force, and as an Assistant Whip for the Democratic caucus.
​
Raja is the child of immigrants. Raja graduated summa cum laude from Princeton University with a degree in mechanical engineering and a certificate from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public Policy. He then graduated with honors from Harvard Law School and clerked for a federal judge before practicing law in Chicago.
​
Raja was appointed by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan as a Special Assistant Attorney General to help start the state’s Public Integrity Unit created to root out corruption in Illinois. As a member of the Illinois Housing Development Authority, Raja chaired its Audit Committee, helping to provide thousands of low and moderate-income families across the state with affordable housing. Raja also served as Illinois Deputy Treasurer.
​
Raja and his wife, Priya, a physician, live in Schaumburg with their two sons and baby daughter.
​
Archive
​
Topic: Gun Violence, Gun Sense, and the South Asian American Community
Date: Sunday, May 16, 2021 Time 3:00 to 4:00PM PDT (6:00 to 7:00PM EDT)
Speaker: Gun Sense activists Swati Narayan, Moms Demand Action – Texas
​
Abstract:
Swati Narayan, an activist with Moms Demand Action in Texas, will discuss the on-going epidemic of gun violence in the United States, its impact on communities and what we as South Asian Americans can do about it. She will also discuss some important pieces of legislation as well as give us a blueprint for how South Asian Americans can successfully mobilize and raise their voices at the local, state, and national levels for a sensible gun policy which puts the safety of all communities in America first.
​
Speaker Bio:
Swati Narayan was born in Houston, Texas to immigrant Indian parents. She attended University of Texas at Austin and University of Houston. She has worked in the nonprofit sector both in India and in her home city of Houston focusing her efforts on underserved women and children. Swati became involved in gun violence prevention after the Sandy Hook massacre where her best friend’s children attended school. She has taken on a leadership role in the Houston Moms Demand Action ( https://momsdemandaction.org ) chapter and actively works with students across the city. Swati is a Leadership Houston alum (Class XXXV) and Board Director, serves on the Women of Distinction Advisory Board for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, the Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston’s IMpower Board, Board Director at University of Houston’s Friends of Women’s Studies, Momentum Education’s Advisory Board, and is active in the Houston Independent School District and the local Planned Parenthood.
​