Although the turnout in yesterday’s municipal elections was low, it was still a day to celebrate for voters who care about diversity and reform. Bill de Blasio and John Liu, two candidates who have voted against term limits, won their runoff elections, and should go on to win the general election in heavily Democratic New York.
Over the weekend, I went to visit the new Museum of the Chinese in the Americas (MoCA) which was designed by Maya Lin. The museum had moved into a new, larger space, airy and rich with cultural legacy and meaning. As I gazed at artifacts of Asian American history, including posters from the pre-Exclusion Act era decrying the Chinese and replicated carvings from Angel Island, fragments of immigrant hopes and dreams etched into quarantine walls, I breathed deeply. I was surrounded by the past, which shapes us but does not hold us. There was a wall listing all the major laws and court rulings that afforded Chinese Americans opportunities, and those that closed doors for entire communities. The laundry taxes. Yick Wo v. Hopkins. The Exclusion Acts – the reason why it was uncommon to see Chinese American and Asian American families in the US before the 1960s. Why it used to be much more common to be the “only lonely” at school or at work.
There was heavy history in these rooms, at times literal. The 8 pound livelihood, the weighty irons that laundry workers used to press out wrinkles – there was one that you could try to lift. Imagine how hard it would be to lift it hundreds of times a day.
Then it was on to Chinese American pioneers, the first female dentist, the first to be a pilot in the Air Force. More modern firsts like Steve Chen and Gary Locke. All this history swirling and mingling. I came out a tad overwhelmed, but grateful for the rich legacy of activism and leadership that Asian Americans before me have engaged in.
Yesterday, when I went to go vote, there was Chinese translation offered at my pollsite, and very few voters. Turnout was in the single digits. But as pundits have noted, the low turnout meant that highly motivated voters – union members, Asian Americans, can and did make their voices heard. John Liu won and by doing so, is on his way to becoming the first Asian American public official elected across New York.
For a long time, Liu had been the only voice in the NYC government that drew attention to Asian Americans and their concerns – to hate crimes, to underserved students, and to overcrowded schools. This year, he will be joined by as many as three Asian Americans in elected positions in city government.
So they might not have the same perspective or background or even agree on policies, but Liu will no longer be the only lonely elected in NYC.
– Caroline
