” \ufffd The Daily Recorder Se111ing the Capital and Califo_r’}ia since 1911 __ Friday, December 12, 1986 Lobbyist helps _ _.,: I . protect rights of\u00b7\u00b7 \u00b7 welfare recipients By SUnlta SohrabJI o\ufffd \ufffdrder Staff w\ufffd\ufffd When Kevin Aslanian fmt became involved in welfare issues, he was working at a string of menial jobs, hacf only recently learned to spia..,at English, was on welfare himself, and was angry with then-Gov. Ronald Reagan for pushing welfare reform. \”I thought it quite Wljust that Reagan did not pay taxes but received subsidies, and he was complaining about poor people receiving money to house and feed their children. That prompted me into getting involved with welfare rights.\” said Aslanian, 1he son of Communist parents, a former resident of the Soviet.Union and now the lobbyist for the Coalition\u00b7 of\u00b7 California Welfare Rights Organmaions. A Daily Recor\ufffd r, Pfoflle .. , That wa in 1971 and Aslanian, .aten 28 and a SaD: Jose resident, joined \ufffd- welfare l’CIICjpientsand founded tho Welfare \u00b7\u00b7 Recipienfs\u00b7Jague. \”We needed to protect ourselves from constandy being \ufffd ,by &be county welfare department, wjjo seaned to have the notion that you’re guilty until proven innocent,\” liq\” said. \”The thtay was ihat if we stood toðez. we might diminish the amount of abuse recipil\ufffd were subjected to.\ufffd AS\ufffd, who . aaught himself welfare law.ii. and neva \ufffd college, worked widt ihe ieague for eight y\ufffd, eventually fou.qding the welfare rights coalition to; lobby the Legislature on behalf of\ufffd\u00b7 recipients. Volume 75, Number 241 The coalition, comprised of local welfare groups statewide, only began receiving funding two years ago. Aslanian came Qll staff in July to work part-time directly assisting the needy, and pan-time u a lobbyist. The coalition also employs one full-time\u00b7 attorney and operates on a yearly budget of $100,000 from founda\u00ad tion grants and IX’ivate conttibu\ufffd. Aslanian, now 43, says \ufffd has lived most \u00b7or his life as a poor \ufffd \ufffd: he was six, Aslanian’s parents emi.gialal . with their three children from the United States to the Soviet Un\ufffd -\ufffd\u00ad meed extreme poverty \ufffdFive of us lived in two rooms with no shower, no bath, no hot water and no kitchen. We would eat potatoes three times a day, sometimes,\” he recalled. His parents had thought of Russia as a ‘ continued on page 2 Welfare from page 1 _________ _ \”heaven on earth\” said Aslanian. They had both been members of the Communist Party in the 1930s, and although they later dropped out, \”they still beliefflf in the propaganda that Russia was a pandise. At that\u00b7 time, Russia was the place ID be for prograsiffa.\” AsJanian’s parents decided to move to Rusu lt the start of the McCarthy \”Red\u00ad baiting\” era. \”They moved there not for lbauelves, but because they wanted to raise their children in a beur.r society,\” he said. . The Aslanians rounct .. out they were wrong about Russia, … CC>Qld \”\” \u00b7. not emigrare back under the rei\ufffd of Stalin. Tt.ey mnaiMI in Ruma for 14 ;-eiiii, until Kevin. was 20. Aslanian was\u00b7 work\u00ad ing the light man for a movie theatre at lhetime. . Aslanian cited a joke as an example of their situation: \”One Russian asks ano\u00ad ther Russian ‘what would you do if they opened up the borders?’ The man answers, ‘I would climb a tree to avoid being suunpcded.’\” Two Sections Everyone in the Soviet Union wanted to come to America, he said. BUI’ IN MOVING back to Ameri\u00ad ca, Aslanian was amued to find the same level of povaty existed Jae. \”I never thought that similar situa\u00ad tion would occur in this country, and yet I know m 10 people living in two rooms, two AFDC (welfare program) families who can’t afford tile rent on their own. \”It is so common here in the !a.\”Ml of milk and honey,\” he . said, adding that Russians would not believe that IOl’t of povaty exists htze. Aslanian was destitute upon his retmn, did not undmtand English and posseaed few stills. He enrolled in San Jose City College to learn English, and fpeaks eloquently now, although with a heavy accenL Growing up in Russia has made him vay non-mataialistic, said Aslanian. \”I have no need to keep up with the Joneses. I don’t en.\” Owning a car in Russia would be unthinkable for the common man, he said. The avm.ge wage is 120 rubles a month, and a car is about 5,000 rubles. \”You don’t think about having a car there. Now I have a TV; a house and a car; that’s heaven. What else do I need?\” Aslanian, who currently earns $20,000 a year, said his wife, Diane, is occasion\u00ad ally frustrated by his non-matenalism. \”She grew up here,\” he explained joking\u00ad ly. He has been married to Diane for 15 years. They have three children. Karena, the eldest, is 15, Seda is 13, and David is U. When be was begiiiriing his career as a lobbyist for California Rural Legal\”\ufffd’ Amstance in San Franciseo, As\ufffdia\ufffdr:\u00b7 . recalled bringing his cl\\lldren to Sacra- \ufffd : mento with him for \u00b7ari adventure. ”l’t:; would put them in an empty committee{;\ufffd room, and they would-sleep, and I would1r,i,1 take off to do my work.\” r\ufffdi (Next Page, More) lI[t\ufffd \u00b7 \”\”.1; Aslanian worked with Califmnia Rma1 Legal Aaislance, a federally-funded but state–administered legal aid program, from 1979 until this year, lobbying for welfare and food stamp recipien\ufffd. Between his work with the Welfare Recipients I.ague, the CRLA and the , coalition, Aslanian\” said he knows lhe welfare system better than those who administer the programs. You have to, Aslanian said he Is frustrated because people don’t really understand poveny and have many misconceptions about the poor. odaerwi9e they’ll Uy IO get you with a . loophole.\” Aslanian said he spends most of his time\u00b7 helping die needy get through lhe welfmesystem. \”YOU HA VE ID bep in IOIEh with the people you iepresent,\” he said \”It makes me remember when rm lobbying that I just spoke to a woman this morning who can’t pay the rent &his month because she was cut off (of welfare) for not showing up to an appointment. \ufffd me, it makes it more real, rather than an abstract coocepL\” Aslanian said he is frustrated because people don’t really understand poverty and have many misco\ufffdns about the po
