Creating a Safe and Prosperous Future for Chinese Americans By Vice President Kamala Harris

In her exclusive submission on January 1, Ms. Hogan highlighted the Chinese community’s concerns about gun control and border security, as well as her commitment to eliminating Asianophobia in the community. (Photo courtesy of Kasey Rollins, courtesy of Herbalife, photo by Kasey Rollins)

For generations, people of Chinese heritage have played a vital role in shaping and strengthening America’s story. In the 1800s, Chinese settlers arrived to mine gold and built the transcontinental railroad—literally helping to connect this nation. Since then, Chinese Americans have served honorably in our military, advanced civil rights, driven innovation, and dedicated themselves to public service.

Yet for too long, individuals of Chinese descent have faced exclusion. Xenophobic laws in the late 19th and early 20th centuries restricted Chinese immigrants from full participation in housing, employment, and education. Chinatowns were burned, and residents were violently driven from their homes. The Chinese Exclusion Act remains one of the darkest chapters in our history.

Today, more than five million Chinese Americans now call this country home. I was proud to recognize your contributions while ushering in the Year of the Dragon at the White House and in my home. And when I was running for district attorney of San Francisco, I was honored to receive the name 賀錦麗 from a dear friend and her father.

My mother made her own journey to America at 19, carrying with her a dream to cure breast cancer. She instilled in us the values of hard work, showed us the power of a good education, and taught us to believe in the promise of America. And at a young age, I decided I wanted to do the work of fighting for people, and that has been the story of my entire career.

As a courtroom prosecutor, I stood up for women and children against predators. As attorney general of California, I took on the big banks and delivered $20 billion for families who faced foreclosure. As vice president, I have stood up for workers and seniors. Now, I am running for president—because I believe Americans want and deserve a leader who will fight for all the American people.

This election is about two very different visions for our nation: one focused on the future, the other on the past. I represent a new, optimistic generation of leadership and will chart a New Way Forward—one that ensures you can not just get by, but get ahead.

I grew up in a middle class household, and I know firsthand the struggles working families face. I remember my mother sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of tea and a pile of bills, spending long hours trying to make things work – packing lunches before me and my sister Maya woke up, and paying bills after we went to bed. As president, I will create an Opportunity Economy where every American has the opportunity to own a home, to build wealth, to start a business. My plan will cut taxes for 100 million Americans, crack down on price gouging for food and groceries, and lower the costs of essentials. I will also build three million affordable new homes and provide up to $25,000 in down payment assistance for first-time homebuyers. I remember the excitement my mother felt after saving for years to buy our first home, and I want your families looking to achieve their dream of homeownership to feel the same way. I have sat down with Chinese American small business owners to talk about the work we still need to do. As president, I will increase the startup expense deduction 10-fold, from $5,000 to $50,000, while expanding access to capital for entrepreneurs.

I will protect the Affordable Care Act and lower drug prices. My plan will cut taxes for families with newborns by $6,000, and $3,600 in years after that, and it strengthens Medicare to cover home care for seniors. When my mother was diagnosed with cancer, I remember doing whatever I could to make her comfortable. I know the financial and emotional toll of caregiving, and I will work to ease that burden as you care for your loved ones.

I believe everyone has a right to safety, to dignity, and to justice. I have fought crime my entire career, and as vice president, I helped deliver $15 billion for local law enforcement and public safety initiatives, and enacted legislation to combat anti-Asian hate crimes. I have joined you in mourning too many lives cut short by gun violence, including in close-knit communities like Monterey Park. While Trump says we should “get over” gun violence while pushing for more guns on our streets, I will work to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people.

Safety also means fixing our immigration system. I will sign the bipartisan border security bill that Trump sabotaged, and I will support efforts to create an earned pathway to citizenship. I reject the false choice between securing our border and creating a system of immigration that is orderly and humane. We can and must do both. Finally, my administration will stand up to xenophobia against Asian American communities, and against the kind of dangerous rhetoric that fueled anti-Asian violence during the pandemic.

Donald Trump is an unserious man, but the consequences of him ever getting back into the White House are brutally serious. He incited hate against Chinese Americans and vilified immigrants to deflect from his failures. He and his allies would gut the Affordable Care Act, raise costs by nearly $4,000 a year for families, cut Social Security and Medicare, and lead to a recession by mid-2025.

Trump is also a threat to our freedoms. He speaks of being a dictator on “day one,” terminating the Constitution, weaponizing the U.S. Department of Justice, and using the military against Americans. His own national security officials warn he is unhinged and unstable, and out for unchecked power. Consider what he intends to do if we give him power again, especially after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled he would be immune from criminal prosecution. He would wield the powers of the presidency not to improve your life, not to strengthen our nation, but to serve himself.

We cannot let this happen. And I promise to preserve our freedoms and global leadership.

There is so much at stake in this election, and Americans are ready to turn the page on the chaos of the past. You deserve a leader who not only sees you, but stands with you.

I humbly ask for your vote, because if I have the privilege of serving as your President, I know that together we can turn the page on this divisive era of our politics and start writing the next great chapter in the most extraordinary story ever told. Together, we can create a stronger, safer, and more prosperous future.

Read the Vice President’s op-ed:
English: https://www.worldjournal.com/wj/story/121179/8332950