> GOOD EVENING AND WELCOME TO ‘METROFOCUS.’

I’M JACK FORD.

AMID THE ONGOING SURGE IN ATTACKS AGAINST ASIAN NEW YORKERS, THERE’S A PUSH TO FIND IMMEDIATE LIFESAVING SOLUTIONS AND TO BETTER EDUCATE STUDENTS ACROSS THE STATE.

RECENTLY WE’VE HEARD CALLS FOR MORE POLICE, A SECURITY COMPANION SERVICE, AND ALSO A VOUCHER PROGRAM THAT WOULD REIMBURSE PEOPLE FOR CAR TRIPS AS VIOLENCE ON THE SUBWAY SPIKES.

AS FOR THE CLASSROOM, STATE SENATOR JOHN LIEU IS FIGHTING TO REQUIRE PUBLIC SCHOOLS TO TEACH ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY.

NEW JERSEY HAS ALREADY MOVED TO DO SO, AND SENATOR LIEU HOPES THAT NEW YORK WILL FOLLOW SUIT.

FOR MUCH MORE ON THESE ISSUES, WE’D LIKE TO WELCOME BACK SENATOR JOHN LIEU, WHO REPRESENTS QUEENS AND CHAIRS THE NEW YORK CITY EDUCATION COMMITTEE.

HE JOINS US AS PART OF OUR EXPLORING HATE INITIATIVE ON ANTI-SEMITISM, RACISM, AND EXTREMISM IN AMERICA.

SENATOR, WELCOME.

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.

THANK YOU, JACK, FOR HAVING ME.

AND THANK YOU FOR ADDRESSING THIS IMPORTANT ISSUE.

LET’S START BECAUSE THERE ARE A LOT OF ISSUES I DO WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT, BUT LET’S START WITH THE EDUCATION COMPONENT IF WE CAN.

AS I MENTIONED, YOU’RE PUSHING, AND I SAW THROUGHOUT THE COURSE OF YOUR PUBLIC LIFE, YOU’VE BEEN VERY FOCUSED ON EDUCATION ISSUES.

AND YOU’RE PUSHING FOR THIS NOTION OF TEACHING ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY IN THE PUBLIC SCHOOL.

WHAT DO YOU SEE AS THE VALUES, BOTH LONG-TERM AND MORE IMMEDIATELY FOR CREATING A PROGRAM SUCH AS THAT?

AS YOU MENTIONED, THERE’S BEEN THIS INCREDIBLE TWO-YEAR SPATE OF ATTACKS AGAINST ASIAN AMERICANS.

CLEARLY WE NEED A WHOLE HOST OF SOLUTIONS.

I THINK THE LONG-TERM SOLUTION HERE IS TO TEACH AMERICANS ABOUT THE ASIAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE AND HOW WE HAVE BEEN A PART OF ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY.

THE ATTACKS AGAINST ASIAN AMERICANS HAVE IN SO MANY CASES BEEN SO VICIOUS, IT’S ALMOST DEHUMANIZING.

IT’S AS IF — IT’S AS IF ASIAN AMERICANS ARE VIEWED NOT ONLY AS UN-AMERICAN BUT ALMOST NOT HUMANS.

AND SO WHAT WE NEED TO DO IS REALLY HELP PEOPLE UNDERSTAND WHO AND WHAT ASIAN AMERICANS ARE ALL ABOUT BECAUSE I BELIEVE DEEP AT THE ROOT OF RACISM, BIGOTRY, AND HATE IS FEAR AND ALSO IGNORANCE.

SO TO REALLY GET AT THE SYSTEMIC ROOTS OF RACISM, WE NEED TO EDUCATE.

AND EDUCATE MEANS TEACHING OUR SCHOOL KIDS AND THE NEXT GENERATION ABOUT THE ASIAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE.

YOU KNOW, I LAMENT OFTEN THE FACT THAT THE TEXTBOOKS THAT ARE BEING USED IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN NEW YORK TODAY ARE UNFORTUNATELY THE SAME TEXTBOOKS THAT I USED 100 YEARS AGO WHEN I WAS IN GRADE SCHOOL AND MIDDLE SCHOOL, MENTIONING THE COMPLETION OF THE TRANSCONTINENTAL RAILROAD AND THE CONCENTRATION CAMPS THAT JAPANESE AMERICANS WERE SHUTTLED INTO DURING WORLD WAR II.

NO REFERENCE ABOUT THE 9/11 ATTACKS AND HOW THAT — WHAT KIND OF IMPACT THAT HAD ON THE ASIAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE.

THE KILLING OF VINCENT CHIN, WHICH WAS A MILESTONE IN AAPI HISTORY.

AND OF COURSE WHAT’S HAPPENED IN MORE RECENT YEARS.

WE NEED TO — WE NEED TO HELP EVERYBODY UNDERSTAND WHAT ASIAN AMERICANS ARE ALL ABOUT SO THAT WE DON’T CONSTANTLY GET MARGINALIZED INTO EITHER THE MONOMINORITY MYTH, WHICH SAYS SOMEHOW THAT ASIANS ARE ALL RICH AND DOING WELL AND DON’T NEED ANY ASSISTANCE OR SUPPORT WHATSOEVER, TO THE OTHER END OF THE SPECTRUM, WHICH IS THIS PERPETUAL FOREIGNER SYNDROME THAT WE CONTINUALLY SUFFER FROM WHERE PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, DON’T VIEW ASIAN AMERICANS AS REALLY AMERICANS EVEN THOUGH WE’VE BEEN HERE FOR 150 YEARS.

YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING’S SUBTLE FROM, YOU KNOW, I STILL GET SPEAK ENGLISH TO WHERE, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE ASK ME WHERE I’M FROM, AND I SAY NEW YORK CITY, AND SOMEHOW THAT’S NOT A SATISFYING ANSWER.

IT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE TO THEM BECAUSE OF THE WAY YOU LOOK, THAT YOU CAN’T POSSIBLY BE FROM HERE.

THERE HAS TO BE AN OTHERNESS ABOUT YOU BECAUSE OF THAT.

LET ME ASK YOU A QUESTION BECAUSE IN SUPPORTING THIS PROPOSAL, AS YOU KNOW, IN THE WORLD OF LEGISLATION, IF YOU PROVIDE SOMETHING FOR ONE GROUP, YOU OFTENTIMES GET THAT, WELL, WHAT ABOUT US REACTION.

SO WHAT WOULD YOU SAY TO NEW YORKERS WHO SAY, OKAY, THAT’S FINE.

BUT IF YOU DO THAT, IT MEANS THAT THERE WILL BE LESS TEACHING ABOUT OTHER GROUPS HERE?

HOW DO YOU RESPOND TO THAT PUSHBACK?

WELL, FIRST OF ALL, JACK, THE OTHERNESS THAT YOU SPEAK TO, THAT IS PRECISELY WHAT MAKES ASIAN AMERICANS MORE VULNERABLE TO HATE AND BIGOTRY AND THEREFORE THE VIOLENT ATTACKS THAT WE HAVE SEEN TOO MANY INCIDENTS OF.

AS FAR AS TEACHING — INCLUDING AAPI OR ASIAN AMERICAN HISTORY IN THE CURRICULUM, THAT DOESN’T DETRACT FROM ANYBODY ELSE.

IT ONLY ADDS TO THE RICHNESS AND THE COMPLETENESS OF WHAT WE’RE TEACHING OUR KIDS.

AND, IN FACT, AS I AM PUSHING FOR AAPI INCLUSION IN THE SYLLABI ALL THROUGHOUT NEW YORK, I’M ALSO LOOKING TO INCLUDE THE HISTORY OF AFRICAN AMERICANS, OF THE LATINX COMMUNITIES, OF INDIGENOUS PEOPLE.

THIS IS ALL PART OF AMERICAN HISTORY AND THE AMERICAN EXPERIENCE, AND TO EXCLUDE ANY OF THIS WOULD BE A TRUE DISSERVICE TO NOT ONLY OUR SCHOOL KIDS BUT FOR THE NEXT GENERATIONS OF AMERICANS AND NEW YORKERS TO COME.

AND, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A TIME NOT TOO LONG AGO WHEN ASIAN AMERICANS WEREN’T EVEN INCLUDED IN THE OTHERS.

SO, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A PUSH TO INCLUDE AFRICAN AMERICAN AND LATINX AND NATIVE AMERICAN HISTORY, AND ASIAN AMERICANS WEREN’T EVEN INCLUDED IN THAT.

SO, NUMBER ONE, I’M GLAD WE’RE FINALLY BEING INCLUDED IN THAT OTHER CATEGORY, BUT THE IMPORTANT THING REALLY IS TO ERADICATE, IN THE LONG TERM ERADICATE HATE AND BIGOTRY BY HELPING ALL OF OUR SCHOOL KIDS AND THE NEXT GENERATIONS UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE ALL PEOPLE WITH DIFFERENT STRUGGLES, DIFFERENT EXPERIENCES, AND SHOULD NOT BE VIEWED AS OTHERS OR UN-AMERICAN OR EVEN INHUMAN.

LET ME TALK ABOUT SOME OTHER PROPOSALS THAT ARE OUT THERE.

ONE I SAW WOULD PROVIDE SOME $64 MILLION FOR SOME 50 COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS OUT THERE.

WHAT WOULD BE THE IMPACT OF THAT BE, DO YOU THINK?

THESE ARE LONG-STANDING ORGANIZATIONS IN THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT NEW YORK THAT HAVE BEEN PROVIDING SERVICE FROM FEEDING THE HUNGRY TO PROVIDING SHELTER TO CREATING PROGRAMS FOR OUR YOUTH AND OUR SENIORS.

REAL SOCIAL SERVICE ORGANIZATIONS THAT HAVE TRIED AND PROVEN TRACK RECORDS OF DOING GREAT WORK, BUT THEY HAVE ALWAYS, ALWAYS BEEN WOEFULLY AND INADEQUATELY FUNDED.

AND SO WHAT WE’RE LOOKING TO DO — AND THE FACT THAT THESE ORGANIZATIONS HAVE BARELY THE RESOURCES TO SERVE AND SUPPORT THE AAPI COMMUNITY, THAT HAS MADE EVERYBODY IN THE AAPI COMMUNITY MORE VULNERABLE, MORE VULNERABLE TO HATE, MORE VULNERABLE TO BIGOTRY AND THESE ATTACKS THAT WE HAVE SEEN.

SO WE’RE LOOKING TO PROVIDE FINALLY AN ADEQUATE AMOUNT OF RESOURCES TO ORGANIZATIONS THAT SERVE THE FASTEST-GROWING COMMUNITY HERE IN NEW YORK AND ACROSS AMERICA.

BUT HERE IN NEW YORK, WE HAVE THESE ORGANIZATIONS THAT I’M LOOKING TO SHORE UP SO THAT THEY, IN TURN, CAN SHORE UP OUR ENTIRE COMMUNITY.

AND THIS, JACK, AS YOU MENTIONED FROM THE OUTSET, IT’S TO ADDRESS THE ANTI-ASIAN HATE THAT WE HAVE SEEN.

IT’S ABOUT EDUCATION FOR THE LONG TERM.

FOR THE NEAR TO INTERMEDIATE TERM, IT’S ABOUT BUILDING UP THESE ORGANIZATIONS THAT ARE FAR BETTER EQUIPPED THAN GOVERNMENT TO ADDRESS THESE KINDS OF NEEDS IN OUR COMMUNITY.

THESE ORGANIZATIONS ARE MORE LINGUISTICALLY AND CULTURALLY CAPABLE THAN GOVERNMENT CAN REALLY EVER HOPE TO BE.

AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE OTHER THINGS THAT WE NEED TO DO TO ADDRESS THE HATE.

I MENTIONED A COUPLE OF THINGS IN THE INTRODUCTION.

LET ME ASK YOU ABOUT THEM.

THE NOTION OF MORE POLICING.

THE NOTION OF A SECURITY COMPANION SERVICE.

HELP PEOPLE GET OUT WHO ARE NOW FEARFUL OF EVEN LEAVING THEIR HOMES AT THIS POINT.

ALSO A VOUCHER PROGRAM THAT WOULD REIMBURSE PEOPLE FOR CAR TRIPS AS OPPOSED TO THE SUBWAYS BECAUSE OF THE VIOLENCE IN THE SUBWAYS.

ARE WE SEEING ANY PROGRESS IN THESE?

ONE OF MY COLLEAGUES HAS MADE THE PROPOSAL — ASSEMBLY MEMBER RON KIM MADE THE PROPOSAL ASKING THE GOVERNOR TO DECLARE A STATE OF EMERGENCY AND TO PROVIDE VOUCHERS FOR THESE KINDS OF RIDES BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE AFRAID TO GO OUT ON THEIR OWN AND TAKE SUBWAYS.

I THINK THAT THOSE ARE PROPOSALS THAT ARE WORTH CONSIDERATION, BUT THERE ARE ALSO LARGER AND LONG-TERM ACTIONS THAT HAVE TO BE TAKEN IN ADDITION TO EDUCATION, IN ADDITION TO PROVIDING RESOURCES FOR THESE COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS.

WE DO NEED — WE DO NEED LAW ENFORCEMENT TO HOLD ACCOUNTABLE THESE PERPETRATORS OF HATE CRIMES.

YOU KNOW, BECAUSE IN THE ABSENCE OF HOLDING PEOPLE ACCOUNTABLE, HOLDING ATTACKERS ACCOUNTABLE, IT SENDS AN IMPLICIT MESSAGE THAT THERE’S AN OPEN SEASON ON ASIAN AMERICANS WITHOUT CONSEQUENCE.

WE CANNOT HAVE ANY KIND OF THINKING LIKE THAT OUT THERE.

BUT THERE ALSO NEED TO BE — THERE ALSO NEED TO BE GOVERNMENT AGENCIES LOOKING TO PROVIDE SERVICES TO HOMELESS AND PEOPLE WHO ARE SUFFERING FROM MENTAL ILLNESS.

THAT’S PART OF IT ALSO.

THAT CERTAINLY HAS BEEN A COMPONENT IN THE ATTACKS AGAINST ASIAN AMERICANS.

SO, YOU KNOW, LAW ENFORCEMENT, SERVICES FOR THE HOMELESS, FOR THE MENTALLY ILL, RESOURCES FOR OUR AAPI COMMUNITY, AND EDUCATION ABOUT THE ASIAN AMERICAN EXPERIENCE — THESE ARE A RANGE OF IMMEDIATE, MEDIUM-TERM, AND LONG-TERM SOLUTIONS THAT WE DESPERATELY NEED TO PROTECT THE ASIAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY AND TO HELP REMOVE THE ‘OTHERNESS’ FEELING THAT WE SUFFER FROM.

YOU KNOW, PEOPLE IN THE AAPI COMMUNITY ARE GENUINELY AFRAID, GENUINELY AFRAID TO BE OUT THERE, PARTICULARLY WOMEN AND SENIORS WHO REALLY HAVE BEEN — HAVE BORE THE BRUNT OF MOST OF THE ATTACKS.

IF I CAN GET A QUICK ANSWER TO THIS, I HAVE LESS THAN A MINUTE.

ARE YOU SEEING SOME POSITIVE MOVEMENT IN WHAT THE MAYOR IS DOING?

I THINK MAYOR ADAMS HAS HIT THE GROUND RUNNING.

IN THE TWO MONTHS HE’S BEEN MAYOR, HIS ADMINISTRATION — I FEEL THEY HAVE BEEN FAR MORE SENSITIVE AND SENSIBLE IN THEIR RESPONSE TO THESE ATTACKS, THEIR OUTREACH.

MAYOR ADAMS’ PERSONAL OUTREACH TO THE COMMUNITY.

YOU KNOW, FOR EIGHT YEARS, HE CAMPAIGNED HEAVILY IN THE AAPI COMMUNITY, AND AS MAYOR, HE HAS HIT THE GROUND RUNNING.

SENATOR LIU, IT’S GOOD TO TALK WITH YOU AND ENCOURAGING TO HEAR SOME OF THE THINGS ARE TAKE IS PLACE.

THANKS SO MUCH FOR JOINING US.

YOU BE WELL NOW.

THANK YOU.

YOU TOO.

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