ICAS Bulletin
Institute for Corean-American Studies, Inc.
John C Liu
Member
New York City Council
to address
Good Citizenship and
Civic Duty
ICAS Summer Symposium: The Korean Diaspora
August 14, 2004 Saturday
Venue* (*tba)
Dear Friend:
We are pleased to share with you that John C
Liu will address at the ICAS Summer Symposium: The Korean Diaspora.
John C Liu is
a member of the New York City Council. John is the Chairperson of the Council's
Transportation Committee. He also serves on the committees on Education, Consumer
Affairs, Contracts, Oversight & Investigation, and Lower Manhattan Redevelopment.
As
Chairperson of the Council's Committee on Transportation, Councilman Liu focuses
public policy on the critical role transportation options play in economic development
and access to jobs. John demands, and has secured, more accountability from the
Metropolitan Transportation Authority, a behemoth agency infamous for its lack of
responsiveness to the general public. He has enacted legislation improving safety
for pedestrians and has initiated public works projects to improve vehicular traffic
flow and ease congestion. John has also developed programs bringing yellow taxicabs
to areas outside Manhattan. In addition, he vigorously conducts legislative oversight
over the Department of Transportation and the Taxi and Limousine Commission.
John
strongly believes that quality education is key to the future of each of our school
kids as well as key to the future of our City as whole. He is a product of twelve
and a half years of New York City public school education and is committed to educational
reform without sacrificing public schools. As a member of the Council's Committee
on Education, John insists on raising standards in our public schools, increasing
reliance and trust in teachers to teach our kids and investing City resources in
our future generations. He has also provided millions of dollars to fund high-tech
upgrades to local schools.
John understands that as everyday life increases in
complexity, municipal government must do more to protect consumers against fraud,
misrepresentations and other dishonest business practices. As a member of the Council's
Committee on Consumer Affairs, he has sponsored and helped pass legislation to stop
predatory lending by banks and financial institutions and retail price gouging during
sensitive periods. John has also closed down car dealerships guilty of cheating
customers out of thousands of dollars and proposed legislation to require car dealers
to provide honest contracts.
Shocking as it may be, John is the first and currently
only Asian Pacific American (APA) to be elected to citywide office in New York.
Though he wishes Asian Pacific Americans had been elected long ago, John is honored
to be the first. As the first, he embraces opportunities to broaden representation
and access to government for APAs and for all groups who have lacked a strong voice
in government. John is also immensely proud to have been invited to become a member
of the City Council's Black and Latino Caucus; the caucus has since been renamed
to the Black Latino and Asian Caucus, and he currently serves on its executive board.
John
was elected and re-elected to the New York City Council by the people of northeast
Queens in Auburndale, Flushing, Fresh Meadows, Linden Hill, Queensborough Hill and
Whitestone. To this day, it is a mind-boggling honor to him that he has the privilege
of representing at City Hall the people of his hometown where he grew up. John
and his wife Jenny are the proud parents of a terrific little boy Joseph. They
are homeowners in Flushing, living just blocks from the buildings where John lived
his childhood. Beginning with Kindergarten at PS 20, John attended local public
schools and then went to on to graduate from the Bronx High School of Science and
Binghamton University, where he earned a degree in Mathematical Physics.
John is
committed to making Flushing a "Destination of Choice", for all people from throughout
the region. To improve conditions in the downtown area, he has secured additional
sanitation and sewer services, created a Business Improvement District to fund supplemental
street cleaning and area promotion, and issued guidelines for sensible growth in
both housing and commerce. He is also committed to building schools, libraries,
senior citizen centers and youth centers while protecting existing residential neighborhoods.
John
is a long-time community activist and has worked with numerous organizations. When
he served as President of the North Flushing Civic Association, Member of Queens
Community Board 7, and Vice President of the Queens Civic Congress, John fought
for greater community participation in citywide development issues. Prior to serving
in the City Council, he worked as a manager at the global consulting firm of PriceWaterhouseCoopers.
John draws upon his real world fiscal expertise to root out waste and mismanagement
in municipal government.
John has dedicated his life to public service. He is
a full-time Council Member with a mission to hold City Hall accountable and help
restore public trust in our democracy. John's office is made up of a team of talented
individuals who, by all measures, are dedicated public servants and community leaders
in their own right. He is also a District Leader in the Queens County Democratic
Party organization and serves as a Vice Chairperson of the New York State Democratic
Party Executive Committee. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Sang Joo Kim / signed
Sr. Fellow & Executive Vice President
ICAS
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