Character experience, Ellen Young.

More than a decade ago, Ellen Young realized that if she didn't take part in the election, she would not be able to change the situation of China people and integrate into the mainstream society. She began to take her daughter to the streets to register voters and mobilize Chinese to vote. From the initial white eyes to the gradual understanding and support, Ellen Young achieved success through unremitting efforts. On June 7, 2006, New York Rep. Ellen Young was elected as the first Asian female state representative in the history of New York State by a high vote, which set a new record for Chinese to participate in politics.

On June 7, 2006, Ellen Young was elected as the first Asian female representative in the history of New York State.

Ellen Young was born in Taiwan Province to a mother from Jiangsu and a father from Guangdong. She grew up in a family village (a military compound in Taiwan Province Province). hour

Hou is often bullied at school. He was beaten and didn't dare to fight back. He just cried. Once, a girl bullied her with numbers. She was so angry that she bit the girl, and the wicked complained first. In order to make her learn to be brave, her mother will take little Ellen to reason with the girl. But even with her mother's courage, Allen still dared not go. Speaking of which, Ellen Young smiled, "I don't know why I was so timid. But later, that girl became my good friend, and she developed well in Hong Kong. Every time I go to Hong Kong, I stay at her house and go in and out with her keys, just like at home. This oath, she also specially came from Hong Kong to participate. "

Ellen Young's timidity was severely criticized by his mother: how can a child born in a military family and raised in a village head be so timid? Mother hates iron not to produce steel, which shocked little Ellen, and she began to consciously change herself. "The turning point is at 14 years old. At that time, I couldn't stand being bullied by others. I seemed to see my own shadow. I fought against injustice everywhere, acted bravely, and my personality completely changed. From inferiority to self-pity, I became very confident and brave. "

Since then, Ellen Young, whose family life is not rich, began to secretly help more children around her, which is also the source of her "service to the community". Once, a classmate had difficulty in paying tuition at home, and Ellen launched a fundraising among her classmates. In just one month, she raised 600,000 Taiwan dollars for that classmate (old Taiwan dollars, equivalent to a student's tuition and fees for one year), and Ellen Young tasted the taste of helping others for the first time. "I found it so simple to be happy with others. In the process of caring for and helping others, I have gained great happiness, become more and more cheerful, and cultivated courage and the ability to communicate with others ... "Ellen Young is always described as" smart, strong and brave ". She has been a shy child since she was a child, and often hides behind adults to take pictures.

A shrinking little girl. Since Ellen Young entered middle school, her personality has gradually become cheerful. Perhaps it was adolescent rebellion, and Ellen Young always longed for freedom and independence. After that rebellious period of youth, Ellen Young saw the direction of the future road more and more clearly: wherever I go, I will travel.

There is always news in the village that "the daughter of a certain family has gone to study in the United States" and "the son of a certain family is studying for a doctorate in the United States". Whenever Ellen Young's father heard such news, he always said to her at the dinner table, "If only we could have a doctoral student studying in the United States." Maybe Yang's father just said it, but he always kept it in mind.

At the age of 25, Ellen Young was the deputy general manager of a big company in Taiwan Province. At that time, the company was going to open a branch in America. When hearing the news, Ellen Young was the first to recommend himself to the company.

She recalled that few people wanted to travel at that time. Many people think that she wants to give up such a well-paid job. When she travels to the United States alone, she thinks that Ellen Young is crazy. That day, she told her father at the dinner table: "I'm going to work in America." Although I am not studying, only the best people can get this opportunity. "

The clever Ellen Young is appreciated by the company, and she is ambitious. She set foot on American soil in 1977. When her parents went to the airport to see her off, she waved happily to her parents: "Don't think about me. I have been wandering outside for two years and will come back after seeing the world. " At that time, Ellen Young didn't expect to participate in politics in the United States today. She just wants to do something while she is young, so that other parents in the family can say at the dinner table, "Ellen from the Yang family next door has gone to work in the United States."

After arriving in the United States, Ellen Young still played her enthusiastic "volunteer heart", and she volunteered wherever she needed people. 1979, already

Pregnant Ellen Young didn't stop volunteering. She often says to her daughter, "You know, you volunteered with me when you were still in my stomach." Daughter Ji Huashan was born less than a year ago, and Ellen Young suffered a serious car accident. The spinal nerves were compressed and the whole body could not move. Apart from moving her fingers, she was paralyzed. Ellen Young recalled that painful experience and choked several times, but tears never fell. She said, "I know I can't fall. What if I can't move? " . At that time, I knew I had to live not only for myself, but also for others. "

On the morning of New Year's Eve that year, Ellen Young received a New Year's call from her mother. Parents' warm greetings and deafening firecrackers came from the phone. Ellen Young, who can't move, is lying in bed. Her daughter, who just learned to walk, is lying in bed crying for her mother's hug.

Strong-willed Ellen Young didn't want to tell her parents about her situation. She braced herself as usual to say hello to her mother. Hearing her mother's greetings plunged her into grief. It was China New Year. Not only can she not cook, but she can't even get up and hug her daughter. After a few minutes of silence, she finally cried.

Mother learned that Ellen Young and her daughter couldn't take care of themselves and immediately flew to new york to take care of them. Ellen Young said that she had experienced many difficulties in her life, but she always "reported good news but not bad news" to her family. Only then did she feel that her life was desperate and would she tell her family. With the support of his family, Ellen Young recovered quickly and was able to walk independently after half a year. However, the sequelae left by the car accident also affected her later life-her spine was injured and she could not carry any heavy objects.

Ellen Young was glad that she was able to escape the robbery. She told reporters that it was only after paralysis that she realized how important it was to be healthy and happy all her life. Since then, Ellen Young has become as powerful as a phoenix in the bath. When her daughter was two and a half years old, Ellen Young became a single mother. Suffering from domestic violence and unemployment, Ellen Young's life once fell into another dilemma. Whenever she wants to cry and give up, she looks at her well-behaved daughter and tells herself, "I want to live well for my daughter."

Ellen Young heard that being a doctor or a lawyer in the United States will make a lot of money, but she has never read any university degree, so she can only look for job advertisements such as paralegals in the newspaper. Ellen Young, who has experienced hardships, seems to be more confident. She told the law firm, "I can speak English, Mandarin, Minnan dialect, Cantonese and Taishan dialect. It would be a pity if you didn't hire me. " Sure enough, the other party was attracted by Ellen Young's confidence and talent, and hired her. Every week, Ellen Young works in the lawyer's upstairs for three and a half days, and takes care of her daughter the rest of the time.

Every morning, she sends her daughter to a neighbor's house to take care of her. The daughter cried with tears in her eyes and holding her legs, "Mom, I don't want to go to my neighbor's house. I want to be with you." Mother and daughter go through this "life and death parting" every day. For them, each other is the only one, and each other is their life. Inheriting his mother's cleverness, Ji Huashan achieved excellent academic performance since childhood, and always brought home awards to his mother, which was the greatest comfort to Ellen Young. Ji Huashan and Ellen Young have been living together since they were two and a half years old. They understand each other and support each other. Mothers pay for their daughters, and daughters are proud of their mothers. Ellen Young called her daughter "a smart and gentle baby" and her daughter called her "the most capable mother in the world".

From 65438 to 0989, an organization in Taiwan Province Province awarded Ellen Young the Outstanding Overseas Youth Award in recognition of his long-term service to the community. In the same year, 10-year-old daughter Ji Huashan also won the 128 outstanding student award in public primary schools. Mother and daughter are like a race, winning prizes together and growing up together.

In the first half of this year, when Ellen Young announced that she would run for the New York State House of Representatives, her daughter did not hesitate to quit her job in a Wall Street law firm to help her mother run for public office. Ellen Young said, "I know my daughter has sacrificed a lot for me." But the daughter said, "For my mother, even giving everything is not a sacrifice. That's what I want to do."

Ellen Young suffered a spinal injury, so she couldn't carry heavy objects in her hand, so her daughter became her "favorite". When buying food in the supermarket, it is her "vegetable basket"; When attending the meeting, it was her "briefcase"; She is naturally her "right-hand man" when campaigning in the street. This tacit "mother-daughter partnership" is perfect. "Because I don't participate in the election, I can't integrate into the mainstream society." Ellen Young simply said, "China immigrants have been focusing on making a living. For a long time, their awareness of participating in politics has been weak, and they have adhered to the creed of "snow in front of their own doors, hanging high if it doesn't matter to them", unaware that participating in politics is actually closely related to their own interests. In the legislature, we can't hear the voices of China people and our specific demands can't be reflected, so we can't change the situation of China people and be marginalized forever. Your own rights and interests can only be won by yourself, and participation in politics is the only way. "

In order to promote Chinese participation in politics, Ellen Young started with the most basic voter registration. She didn't know how many China people were stopped in the street, registered voters for them and mobilized them to vote. My daughter Ji Huashan started to register voters with her mother at the age of 9. "At the same time, I also want to track and mobilize voters to vote on election day. At first, people didn't understand, and I met a lot of supercilious eyes. "

Ellen Young has only one belief, that is, let more Chinese immigrants participate in politics and hear the voice of Chinese in the legislature. 1994 Ellen Young, which is not rich, spent more than 1000 dollars to buy a computer to check the information of voters and educate them. Ellen Young will become the first Chinese female representative in the history of New York State.

Accompanied by state senators Stawinski, Liu Chunyi and Ji Huashan, Ellen Young walked into Maxim's restaurant, and everyone's face was written with great excitement. After entering the door, Liu Chunyi shouted: "We welcome the first Asian female state representative in new york history!" Volunteers and supporters stood up and applauded, and the crowd surrounded Ellen Young. Reporters boarded chairs and dining tables and frantically pressed the shutter for Ellen Young and his campaign team members. The brand-new history of Flushing was born in such a festive and tense scene.

Ellen Young won 36.27% or 65,438+0,889 votes.

According to the data of the Election Bureau, the vote rate was 36.27% or 1889, Hao was 22.93% or 1767, and Park Yong-fan was 29.80% or 1552. According to this data, the gap with Hao is 122 votes, but the number released by Evan Starr Visk, the strategic director of the campaign office, is 140 votes. Starr Visk insisted that it would be futile if anyone questioned the voting statistics. "Because the 140 vote is enough to show that Ellen Young's advantages are remarkable, no matter who challenges this result, it will stand the test."

Ellen Young's speech was not as long as expected. She spent most of her time thanking her supporters by name. Ellen Young finally deliberately pushed Ji Huashan to the front desk. She said that her daughter never cared about paying, and accompanied her through a long and arduous campaign, and her daughter is likely to become the director of her state representative office.

In the process of thanking, I was forced to pause countless times, with tears in my eyes, as if I would cry if I didn't try to restrain myself. When she hugged her daughter for a long time, Ellen Young closed her eyes, and Stawinski and Liu Yiyi around her patted her on the shoulder to show comfort. Ellen Young said she didn't even have time to cry. She is very happy. She believes that she will serve the community better and will never betray the trust of her supporters.

The narrow victory over the opponent highlights the low voter turnout rate of Chinese.

Wang Neng, director of Fushou Elderly Center, said that he always believed that Ellen Young would win, because only she met the criteria for selecting talents. Du Peter said that the campaign is temporary and friends are forever. From now on, all parties in this community should seek more cooperation instead of division.

Zhu, a member of School District 25, said that her attitude has never changed. The election of Chinese is the pride of the community. In the future, we should put aside our prejudices and keep pace with each other to find a broader space for cooperation.

Ye Hanzhong, co-chairman of the Voters' Association, said that he personally felt that the turnout rate of Chinese was not as good as that of Koreans, which was one of the reasons why Ellen Young failed to get a higher number of votes. Ye Hanzhong emphasized that the silence of Chinese voters has a negative impact on the interests of the whole community. Which ethnic group has a high voter turnout rate can show which ethnic group has a higher status in the political arena.