(UNION CITY, CA.) – Union City resident and candidate running for California’s 14th Congressional seat, Wendy Huang, immigrated to the U.S. from Taiwan at just 13 years old.
In an interview with opgov.news, Huang shares how her life experiences shaped the person she is today as both an ordinary citizen and as a candidate.
Taking on household duties such as cooking and cleaning upon arriving in the U.S., Huang grew up with her siblings, as her parents were unable to immigrate with their children.
Though she experienced the typical discrimination and challenges that come with being an immigrant, Huang expresses that her upbringing and life in general complied very well with the American Dream.
Graduating with no student debt, Huang went on to become a high-tech executive, marrying at age 24 and buying her first house with her husband at age 26. She expresses how marrying and becoming successful at a younger age no longer feels possible for current and future generations.
She believes this is due to the rising cost of living and the lack of safety in the U.S.
Using her son’s experience as an example, she shares how upsetting it is to her that the youth of today have to question whether or not they will be able to afford education, a house, or life in general.
“They cannot afford to live here, [so] they’re moving out. Because of inflation and taxation.”
Photo Credit: Madison Vinas
To combat this, Huang shares that she wishes to lower the cost of housing in particular.
When asked about how she plans to do this, she explains that there are many different policies and regulations in California that add to the cost that builders have to pay. These costs are then passed down to those looking to buy a home.
She goes on to question why such policies are not needed in other states and expresses that she wants to fix the affordability crisis rather than just temporarily relieving its effects the way she states other politicians do.
Mayoral candidate for Dublin, CA. Mike McCorriston has ideas of his own on how to make housing more affordable.
In order to attack these problems and others, Huang wants to challenge and change the policies that create or fuel them.
“Policy can affect millions. […] You can only affect so many people as an individual. [...] You can [either] lift up millions or you can decimate millions of hardworking individuals.”
Huang also wishes to tackle the rising sense of a lack of safety and liberty within the country.
To improve safety, Huang stresses the importance of supporting and pushing the judicial system to persecute criminals and stop releasing dangerous people from custody back into the public.
Candidate for Alameda County District Attorney Gopal Krishan shares this view that dealing with crime in tougher ways should be a priority.
At the same time, she expresses the importance of abiding by the constitution and respecting the rights of the people in all of the government’s endeavors.
Photo Credit: https://www.instagram.com/p/DVeI2rwj-r6/?img_index=1
In addition to her intentions to improve the lives of American citizens, Huang expresses how she values U.S. citizens as individuals as well.
She goes on to share that many people have asked her why she rejects endorsements from other politicians. This question is easy to answer for her, as she finds it confusing why one would endorse someone they do not know personally.
She is instead focused on connecting with and gaining support from her community. This way, she can get to know the people she wishes to serve if elected and reach out to let her community get to know her as well.
“I’d rather get endorsements from the people. [...] I’d rather go out there, reach out to and talk to [people] and get their endorsement. Their vote is their endorsement.”
Photo Credit: https://www.instagram.com/p/DWK_RnwjjbR/
Referencing the discrimination she faced earlier in life and her personal observations regarding surface-level opinions damaging relationships, Huang leaves the meeting with this closing statement:
“Don’t hate somebody that you don’t know; get to know all the candidates, suppression is real.”
If you have any questions, please email me at madison.v@lead4earth.org or comment below.
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