By Louis Chan, AsAmNews National Correspondent
The chairperson of the Orange County Board of Supervisors in California tells AsAmNews that racism on the job is nothing new to him.
Andrew Do made the comment after a resident accused him during a recent meeting of “trying to turn our country into a communist country.”
Ironically, Do fled Vietnam with his family at the age of 12 to escape communism.
Yet he says those type of remarks directed toward him have only increased during his six years on the Board.
“I think it brings to the fore, this kind of thing, to me racism, or racist thoughts, that people are quick and ready to go there whenever they disagree with a person of color,” he told AsAmNews.
He says questions about his loyalty or his knowledge of the constitution come up frequently when people clash with him over policy differences.
Do describes himself as a moderate Republican who believes that “government should not be looked at as the solution for all of the issues in society.”
He also believes targeting someone based on their race has unfortunately become acceptable to certain segments of the country.
“I think the the language coming from the last administration stoked that fire, legitimized the fringe elements to come out, and and if anything, feel more legitimate. They feel like, hey, maybe these racist thoughts that I have are not so out of the ordinary, if people at the very top talk the way I do.”
He says his colleagues on the Board came to his defense the first few times racist remarks were directed toward him, but he says they realized there’s no reasoning with these people and now choose to keep quiet to avoid stoking the flames.
It was Democratic State Senator Dave Min (D-Irvine) who came to Do’s defense recently.
“These types of deplorable racist comments, whether directed at elected officials or anyone else, are unacceptable and unbecoming of OUR values of inclusivity and tolerance,” Min said in a statement released to AsAmNews. “Orange County today is incredibly diverse, and this diversity makes our community and our economy stronger.”
Do says Min’s remarks caught him by surprise and that he plans to call the State Senator to thank him.
“When it comes to pushing back against racism, that’s not a partisan issue,” said Do. “When I think of the Senator, I don’t even think of him, Republican or Democrat, I just see him as a fellow Asian American.”
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