Interested in
ExCom Positions: Undeclared
At-Large Board Member: Progressive Caucus Lead
Based in: Beijing
The direction America is taking under Trump and the Republican Party is terrifying. Sitting passively on the sidelines is no longer an option.
I am an educator teaching in Beijing"my wife and I moved here with our son and daughter in 2015. I have been involved in Democratic and progressive politics before, and I was a volunteer in the 2004 and 2008 Presidential and Senate campaigns"collecting thousands of signatures, recruiting volunteers for phone banking, and working with local Democratic organizations in New York City. My home, in New Paltz, New York is the center of a newly invigorated activism that is trying to put pressure on John Faso (R), the 19th District's Congressional Representative. Waiting around until 2020 to become politically active is not an option. Special elections, midterms, town halls, and pressuring Members of Congress"action should be ongoing and immediate.
My background also includes decades of educating, protesting, and civil disobedience around issues including mass incarceration, the Iraq war, climate change, Black Lives Matter, unions and labor rights, antiracism, the minimum wage, and financial regulation. As a teacher, school administrator, and professional development director, I have experience coordinating, running, and presenting at workshops for parents, teachers, administrators, and Boards of Trustees.
I also have a long history and interest in China, "first visiting in 1989 and visiting or studying here many times in the past 28 years. My Mandarin Chinese proficiency would be a useful tool for my work serving DA China.
At a time when the world seems perched at the brink of disaster because of the political dysfunction at home in the US, it is invigorating to know that the Democratic Party is unbelievably energized. Every day brings a new list of reasons to rise up and resist, and I want to lend my hand in the fight. Many of the causes progressives have been fighting for are overwhelmingly popular"Medicare for all, raising the minimum wage, reducing gun violence, etc. etc. Getting people to feel empowered instead of helpless"to lend our voices to these causes"can lead not just to defeating the Trump and GOP agenda" it can lead to building a better world for all of us. I am happy to support DA China in any way or role that would be helpful. EMAIL