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Asian American Democrats celebrate Harris' rise in battle for a place in politics • Michigan Advance

CHICAGO – Actor BD Wong told the AAPI caucus at the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday what he told his biracial son at his bar mitzvah.

“I told him in front of everyone, 'You're not half of anything. You're all of everything,'” Wong said. And as the first Asian American nominee of a major political party is set to accept her party's nomination on Thursday, Wong said AAPI people should be proud of that part of Kamala Harris' identity.

“It's amazing to me that we so casually refer to her as the first black president. A lot of times the South Asian part, the Asian American part, gets left out,” Wong said. “And we really need to own that, we really need to be proud of that, we need to uphold it and remind people that this is … an incredible thing. And I think in our kind of non-confrontational Asian American way, we let that slide a little bit, but let's really get into it.”

Angela Alsobrooks, a candidate for the U.S. Senate in Maryland, and U.S. Reps. Ro Khanna of California and Andy Kim of New Jersey – also a candidate for the U.S. Senate – were among the elected Democrats who spoke to the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Caucus on Wednesday, paying tribute to Harris and talking about what her rise to the top of the Democratic ticket means for their communities.

Angela Alsobrooks, candidate for U.S. Senate from Maryland, speaks to the AAPI Caucus during the Democratic National Convention on Wednesday, August 21, 2024. (Kim Lyons/Capital-Star)

“We are living through a joyous time when Kamala Harris is bringing us together and bringing joy back to our country,” Alsobrooks said. “I like what was just said: Half of everything, but all of everything. Doesn't that apply to all of us?”

But they also talked about the challenges facing Asian American politicians and described how they are still stereotyped in their efforts to get a seat at the table.

Kim (D-NJ), the Democratic candidate to replace Bob Menendez in the U.S. Senate, told those in attendance that Asian Americans are the fastest-growing demographic in New Jersey, but when he began running for Congress six years ago, he was told an Asian American candidate could not win in his district.

“In my congressional district, 85% of whites voted for Trump, less than 3% of Asians,” Kim said. “They said, 'If you want to win a seat in Congress, why don't you move to North Jersey, where there are a lot more people who look like you.' That's what they told me. But I said I want to run in my district because this is my home. I'm not just looking for a district to win.”

Kim said he told the people who told him this – including some Democrats, he added – not to define him by his name and the color of his skin.

“I am as American as anyone else. My story is not just an Asian-American story, a Korean-American story, it is fundamentally an American story,” he said to applause from the assembly. “And I am proud that this district, which is 85% white and less than 3% Asian, and has voted for Trump twice, has now voted for a Korean-American Democrat three times.”

Kim added that he is hearing the same naysayers in the Senate election campaign.

“And I said, 'Look again, don't think I'm just a voice for Asian Americans. Don't think I can only speak on these issues,'” he said. He added that he was tired of only being asked for help when there were cases of hate against Asian Americans.

“Yes, that's important. Yes, it's important to consider affirmative action and other issues, but I say we have a say on everything, not just Asian American issues. We deserve a seat at the table on every single decision that affects this country.”

Khanna (D-California) spoke of Harris, with whom he has worked since her time in California's government. “She has had to break barriers, so she knows we have to break barriers so other people have a chance,” Khanna said.

He said the politics of authenticity Kim spoke of was used by Republican vice presidential candidate U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) when he spoke about his own wife, Usha. In his speech at the Republican National Convention, Vance described his family owning a burial plot in eastern Kentucky for seven generations, Khanna said, and implied that Usha Vance would be buried there, too.

“And I think, you know, Usha Vance is a Hindu-American like me. Is she going to have a choice in the matter?” Khanna pondered. “What annoyed me about that speech is that Vance was basically implying that the further back you can trace your lineage, the more generations you can trace your lineage back to somehow define what it means to be an American.”

“If we elect Kamala Harris as president of the United States, we will show that this country is a multi-ethnic democracy where you can be an American no matter how long your ancestry is. Anyone can be an American.”

Pennsylvania Capital Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) nonprofit organization. Pennsylvania Capital Star maintains editorial independence. If you have any questions, please contact editor Kim Lyons: [email protected]. Consequences Pennsylvania Capital Star on Facebook and X.

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