May 28th, 2021
Week in Review 5/28/21
John Liu, NY's Asian American Political Trailblazer, Endorses Andrew Yang John Liu, the first Asian American elected to citywide office, has announced his support for Andrew Yang, in a long-awaited endorsement. The moment represented a handing of the political baton, which could bolster votes for Yang among the New York City's growing Asian American electorate. Liu, who ran for mayor in 2013 and was once called the “Energizer Bunny,” is currently a state senator representing Queens; he had previously been a City Council member and city comptroller. Given his status in New York's political landscape, his endorsement was considered highly coveted. With four weeks left to go until primary day, his backing gives Yang a united group of supporters among the city's prominent Asian American elected officials, including Representative Grace Meng, state Assemblyman Ron Kim, and longtime City Council member Margaret Chin.
Andrew Yang Slams the ‘Daily News’ Over Cartoon Depicting Him as NYC Tourist “I’ve seen images like this before — in history books from the turn of the century and World War II images of Asians having beady, slanted eyes and buck teeth,” he wrote. “It’s grounded in a history of casting immigrants and children of immigrants as perpetual foreigners or even subhuman – a stereotype which has been used to divide and exclude people for hundreds of years.” He continued: “I am a proud son of immigrants. But to paint me in the media as a perpetual foreigner to this city is wrong and subtly approves racism at a time when people are being beaten on the street on the basis of who they are. Every time you say that I’m not a real New Yorker, you’re telling another Asian American that they don’t belong … all new Yorkers belong.”
Ron Kim: The Racist Othering of Andrew Yang Yang's insight and perspectives can add real value to this city. But the last time Andrew Yang tried to highlight his anti-poverty agenda by visiting a food pantry in Flushing, the political establishment and mainstream media pounced, portraying him as an out-of-touch outsider elite using people in poverty as props (as opposed to most other politicians who either didn't help, didn't visit, or didn't even know about this issue in the community). With Yang's candidacy, we could have had a substantive discussion about disrupting the "model minority" myth and addressing the social and economic conditions that led to the huge inequality we're seeing in our city. Instead, his detractors keep attacking him for showing up as a "fake" candidate and demanding that he leave the race.
See also: NBC, Axios, NY Mag, Politico, Guardian, Vanity Fair, USA Today, Washington Post, MSNBC, Tik Tok
NY Post: Evelyn Yang Breaks Down in Tears Over ‘Racist’ cartoon Credit: Oliya Scootercaster/FNTV
Andrew appeared on CNN to discuss hate crimes
Yang’s Unanimous Support From Chasidic Communities Continues in Williamsburg Andrew Yang maintained his virtually unanimous support among Brooklyn’s Chasidic leaders, with the endorsement of activists of nine Williamsburg-based Chasidic groups, including both Satmars. “Andrew Yang is making the case to frum communities around the city how he will keep us safe, help our city recover, and finally make us feel like a partner in New York City’s government,” Yeger said. “For far too long, we’ve been cast aside, ostracized and disincluded. I know Andrew will change that, and that’s why frum communities around the city are coalescing around Andrew.
Andrew appeared on Fox5 to discuss his public safety plans.
NYC mayoral candidate Andrew Yang wants extra cops focused on violent crime The NYPD would get more detectives and officers dedicated to fighting gun violence, under a new plan from mayoral candidate Andrew Yang.
He’d also boost funding to help inmates returning home and to employ kids during the summer, among other steps aimed at addressing the city’s recent spike in crime. The goal is to “make this summer a summer that we’ll actually enjoy, and not a summer where ... we’re plagued with these headlines that are just growing more and more commonplace about something terrible happening in the city of New York,” he said at a Thursday press conference in the Bronx.
See also: NY Post
Andrew stood with CM Vanessa Gibson to announce their "A Safe Summer" public safety plan
End of the Road for Parking Requirements In New York City, Democratic mayoral candidate Andrew Yang’s newly released housing plan proposes elimination of minimum parking requirements. Shaun Donovan, one of Yang’s rivals for the nomination, echoes this priority in his platform. Yang’s plan cites the experience of the upstate New York city of Buffalo, which eliminated minimum parking requirements in 2017.
Andrew was on WNYC’s Brian Lehrer
Yang wants to legalize pot, mushrooms, MDMA for military vets to treat PTSD New York City mayoral candidate Andrew Yang wants to legalize party drugs for military veterans — including marijuana, hallucinogenic mushrooms and MDMA — to treat post-traumatic stress disorder, The Post has learned. Yang would push for legalization of certain psychedelics and other drugs in controlled medical settings, according to a plan obtained by The Post. Some of those drugs have been effective at treating the condition, according to some studies and trials.
The Campaign released a new ad, Evelyn
NYC’s Yang and Garcia Reap Most Public Mayoral Campaign Funds New York City mayoral aspirants Andrew Yang and Kathryn Garcia brought in the most money in public matching campaign funds among a crowded field of Democratic candidates, the city Campaign Finance Board said Thursday. Former presidential contender Yang got almost $2.2 million and former city Sanitation Commissioner Garcia, who recently scored endorsements by the New York Times and Daily News, got $2.1 million in public financing, representing nearly half of the $8.8 million disbursed Thursday for the June 22 Democratic mayoral primary
A Wrenching Knicks Loss, but an Electric Night at the Garden The playoff opener was a reminder that at its best, the Knicks basketball experience is as much a cultural event in New York as it is a basketball one. (To that end, Andrew Yang, one of the leading candidates for mayor of New York City, posted a video of himself on Twitter shaking hands with attendees outside the arena before the game. He has apparently gotten over his previous disavowal of the franchise, which had also been posted on Twitter.)
Andrew Yang: Reducing homelessness is key to solving NYC hate crimes crisis
The mayoral hopeful harkened back to the early days of his campaign when he intervened while a photographer was being harassed by a man on Staten Island Ferry. The same man was arrested a few weeks later for assaulting an Asian person on the subway, Yang said. “If you’re a police officer and you encounter someone, right now, we don’t get much information. We know whether you arrested them or not, but we don’t know if they did something that made you concerned but you didn’t want to place them under arrest during that occasion,” the mayoral hopeful explained. “So if you just document, ‘look I warned this person for being disruptive, for being aggressive, in this environment’ and then another officer encounters that person three days later and they’re being similarly aggressive, then you can take action before the person does something criminal, destructive or even violent.”
Lynda Lopez interviewed Andrew on WCBS880
Andrew Yang shares his favorite date spots around New York
As the New York City mayoral primaries approach (mark your calendars: June 22), we couldn't help but wonder where each candidate likes to spend his or her time. First up: Democratic nominee Andrew Yang, who was born and raised in New York State as the son of Taiwanese immigrants and currently lives with his wife Evelyn and two sons in Hell's Kitchen.