Samoan American's last second run wins bronze medal and $4M for US women's rugby

Alex Sedrick ran the length of the pitch to tie the score against the Australian team.

When Alex Sedrick outran Australian defenders for 95 meters for a game-tying try, she didn't know about the $4-million being gifted to USA women's rugby.

In what will go down as a highlight moment from these Olympic Games Paris 2024, Team USA dramatically grabbed the bronze medal in women’s rugby with a jaw-dropping late try by Samoan American Alex “Spiff” Sedrick,  a first-time Olympian, in the final seconds of the game to beat Australia 14-12.

The 26-year old Sedrick isn the usual kicker for the United States, but her coaches told her pregame to be prepared to fill in based on potential substitutions in the bronze-medal match, ESPN reported. She reportedly shanked her two practice kicks but when it counted, she came through.

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The third-place finish is the first medal in 7s for the U.S., with the last time the Americans brought home hardware in the sport was in 1924 when the men’s team won gold in 15s.

The historic win also prompted businesswoman and sports team owner Michele Kang to donate $4 million over four years to USA Rugby to grow the women's game for the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.

Kang, owner of the Washington Spirit, Olympique Lyonnais Féminin and London City Lionesses women’s soccer clubs. Kang, who is dedicated to the advancement of women’s sports through Kynisca Sports International, the first global, female-owned, multi-club organization in women’s football, will gift $4 million over the course of four years to the USA Women’s Rugby Sevens team as it looks to grow the sport and provide improved resources to its players and coaching staff in anticipation of the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

The donation comes on the heels of a historic run for the team in the Paris Olympics. After an impressive win over Great Britain on Monday, the United States defeated Australia in the Bronze Medal Match on Tuesday evening, securing the first Olympic medal for the United States rugby sevens across both the men's and women's competitions.

“2024 has been a banner year for women’s sports with record-breaking attendance and viewership, and women’s rugby is no exception,” said Kang.

“This Eagles team, led by players like Ilona Maher and co-captains Lauren Doyle and Naya Tapper, has captivated millions of new fans, bringing unprecedented attention to the sport. I am so happy to support these outstanding athletes to realize their dream in capturing the gold in Los Angeles in 2028. That work starts now. As corporate sponsors and broadcast networks increasingly see the value and enthusiasm for women’s sports, now is the moment to unlock the full potential of these incredible female athletes and inspire generations to come.”

Michelle Kang, left, and US rugby star Ilona Maher.

“We are stunned and beyond grateful for this transformative gift from Michele to advance USA Women’s Rugby,” said Bill Goren, Chief Executive Officer at USA Rugby. 

“This will allow us to supercharge the progression of this program as we build to climb the podium in 2028 with Gold Medal aspirations in Los Angeles. This increase in support will ensure we can deploy the resources to the right places to win when it matters the most, inspiring a nation of rugby players and solidifying our place on the world stage.”

Kang is the founder and CEO of Cognosante, a medical technology company. As the first woman of color to own a National Women's Soccer League team, the Washington Spirit, and the majority owner of Olympique Lyonnais Féminin and London City Lionesses, Kang has set new standards in women's sports. 

Kang also announced the creation of the Kynisca Innovation Hub, a nonprofit organization seeded with a $50 million philanthropic contribution from Kang, which aims to revolutionize training methods and unlock athletic potential for all female athletes, through research, education and innovation.

In the second half, Australia had several good stretches of possession but Team USA’s defense remained organized and held their line. Australia’s Levi was able to slip through to score her second try of the game to make it 7-12 and what felt like the game-winning points needed for the medal. But a missed conversion from the Australians set up Sedrick’s heroics only moments later.

With only 30 seconds on the clock at the restart, all seemed lost for Team USA with the Aussies on the verge of celebration. Then came Sedrick's heroics and history was made.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge

Suni Lee, Asher Hong help secure medals for the US gymnastic teams

TEAM USA

Asher Hong was a steady and inspirational leader for the US men's gymnastic team.

A pair of Asian Americans helped the United States' men;s and women's gymnastic teams to medals. The highly favored women's team won a gold medal and the men ended a 16-year medal drought by winning a bronze.

It was the first medal since 2008 for the men. The surprising performance could very well be attributed to Asher Hong's enthusiasm. The TV cameras showed him pumping up his teammates, cheering them on and then heartily congratulating them with shouts, pumping fists and man-hugs.

“I’m always the hype, man. I just wanted to give all my energy for my boys," said Hong. "I mean, if I’m not competing, I’m usually cheering for my boys. It gets me excited and I hope it gets them excited and gives them energy to go and have fun just like I do cheering for them.”

YI: Follow all the AANHPI athletes at the Paris Olympics.

Though it was Hong's first Olympics but his solid, steady performance on the rings, vault and floor exercise kept the men's team in the hunt for a medal.

“To finally go out there and show off the routines is like, feels awesome… I feel like I did my job to the best of my extent. I mean, I hit the events that I needed to. High bar was a little messed up, but I recovered well,” said Stanford senior Hong, who was born in Plano, Texas.

"I mean, it’s unbelievable," Hong told NBC News. "We put in so much hard work at home, and we just put our trust and belief in each other, and we went out there, had fun."

Although the US women's team was expected to perform well, high expectations bring its own kind of pressure. Anything less than a gold medal would have been a disappointment.

But when the pressure is on, the women lived up to their reputation as the best gymnasts in the world.

TEAM USA

Suni Lee starred in her return to the Olympics and will defend her title Thursday.

“We had so many expectations on us this time,” Lee said in a post-game news conference. “But I think we did exactly what we were supposed to. We went out there and we had fun with it.”

Japan and China won the Gold and Silver medals respectively.

Suni Lee,  a Hmong American, overcame serious illnesses to return to the form that won her a gold medal  in Tokyo as the Best All-around Gymnast,

After Tokyo, Lee enrolled at Auburn University and played for the school but after a successful first year, she came down with a serious kidney ailment that caused her to return home to Little Canada, Minnesota to receive treatment and recover. For a while, it looked like Paris was not in her future.

However, over the next few years, she regained her strength and worked hard to return to her competitive form.

After losing to the Russians in Tokyo, on Tuesday, teaming up with Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles (with Lee subbing for Jade Carey, who was feeling ill) the US are champions once again.

Lee and Hong coud potentionally win more medals

Although Hong didn't qualify for the men's all around on Wednesday, he will compete on individual apparatus in the following days. Among the American men, he scored highest on rings (14.533) and vault (14.833).

Lee, the reigning women's champion, will compete for the all-around title Thursday (Aug. 1) with her biggest competition being Biles, considered by many as the best gymnast the US has ever produced. It will be the first time to women who have won the women's individual championship will compete against each other.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge

2024 Paris Olympics: Reflections of champion surfer Carissa Moore

Carissa Moore won her first heat in Tahiti.

It shouldn't be a surprise that the No. 1 women's surfer would come from Hawaii where the sport became popular.

Carissa Moore proved her top standing at the Tokyo Olympics where she won a gold medal. She gave the surfing world a worry when she took time off to decompress after the Olympics but the 31-year old s definitely back and looking to repeat as a gold medalist.

She's back for the Paris Olympics, but Paris is 10,000 miles away. The surfing competition is taking place in Tahiti, a colony of France and only a short flight away from Moore's home in Hawaii.

She won her first heat Sunday which allows her to skip round 2 and go straight to round 3.

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During her time off after Tokyo, Moore, who is part Native Hawaiian and Filipino on her mother's side, German on her father's side, was able to reflect on other things besides catching the next wave.

“It taught me how to look at different perspectives and see where other people are coming from,” she shared. “I think it’s important for us all to understand that there’s not one way that’s the right way.”

Moore says she is a proud American, but she said she is an even prouder Asian Hawaiian Pacific Islander athlete who hopes to inspire all cultures and races that anything is possible.

“There is something about growing up in the islands with such a tight community. You feel like you are doing this for everyone,” she said.

Moore began surfing at just 5 years old when she began riding the Waikiki waves with her father,.At age 11, she won her first competition. As she began her career, she quickly climbed to the top, leading her to a successful career in competitive surfing.

Throughout her career, she's won 11 NSSA amateur titles, and even made history in 2008 when she became the youngest champion of the Reef Hawaiian Pro, per her Olympic bio. At the 2021 Tokyo Games, Moore won the sport's first-ever Olympic gold medal. has been surfing since she was seven. Now at 28, she has been the No. 1 woman surfer since she was 20.

In the back of her mind is the thought that this may very well be her last Olympics. After Tokyo, she got married and plans to have a family after the Paaris Games.

"I'm not just a competitive surfer," she says. "I'm a sister, I'm a daughter, I'm a friend and also hopefully, one day, a mother. Having a family of my own is something that is super important to me and is really meaningful."

"I've really had to look at myself and my identity and throw myself into the unknown and take a leap of faith," she explains. "All my friends who are men who are on the tour, obviously, they're able to have families. They've already started their families. It's a big decision for me."

For now, she's focused on winning another gold medal. The US team members all won their first heat Sunday and moving on to the next round.

"The ocean has changed my life and I can't imagine my life without it, I'll be surfing until I'm in the ground," Moore added. "Riding the wave makes you feel free, it makes you feel present, it makes you feel more in love with yourself and the ocean and the environment."

“I feel very fortunate that I have had a lot of really beautiful moments in the ocean. I think some of my favourite days are just surfing at home with my dad or my husband or my little sister at one of my favourite local spots, and the sun is shining and it's warm and the waves are really good and there's nothing to worry about.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge

2024 Paris Olympics: Asian American swimmer wins gold in 100m butterfly

SCREEN CAPTURE

Chinese American Torri Huske, left, and Gretchen Walsh finished 1 and 2 in the 100m butterfly.

In the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, Torri Huske missed out in earning a swimming medal by one-tenth of a second. This year Huske edged out fellow American Gretchen Walsh to win the women’s 100-meter butterfly at the 2024 Paris Olympics by a margin of 0.04 seconds.

Huske, seeded second, beat Walsh, the event’s world record holder Sunday, with a time of 55.59, to Walsh’s 55.63.

“You never really know for sure and I first saw the light by the block and seeing that it was just very surreal, I didn’t even know how to process it,” Huske said. “It’s just very overwhelming when you’ve been dreaming of this moment for so long.”

FYI: Follow all the AANHPI athletes at the Paris Olympics.

Describing her race, the Chinese American continued: “I like to go out in the first 50 and see how fast I can go ... I’m not trying to switch it or trying necessarily to go fast, but I’m just not restraining myself at all. I’m just going, and the second half, I just kind of see what I have left.”

What she had left , apparently, was plenty enough. She was in third place at the 50-m turn before adrenalin kicked in the last 50 meters and as she went faster, Walsh slowed down. Huske earned  Team USA’s first individual gold medal at the 2024 Games.

It is Huske's second medal in the Paris Games. On Saturday, she and Walsh were part of the team that earned a silver in the 4x100 freestyle relay losing out to the Australian swimmers.

Both Huske and Walsh could potentially win more medals. Both of them will be racing in the 100-meter freestyle with preliminaries beginning on Tuesday. They are also expected to team up again in the women’s 4x100-meter medley relay.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge

2024 Paris Olympics: Filipino American fencer wins gold medal again

SCREEN CAPTURE

Filipino American Lee Kiefer, left, scores a point by striking behind her back

To say US fencer Lee Keifer was exhuberant in winning a gold medal may be an understatement. 

The Filipino American swordswoman successfully  defended her gold medal for women's individual foil that she won in Tokyo in 2021.

“I really wanted to put on a good show because my family’s here and they wanted to be there in Tokyo,” she said in an interview on CNBC after her victory. “I just wanted to be able to fence pretty and the results came.”

What made this match different was standing in her way for a repeat in the event was another American, Lauren Scruggs. No matter who won, the Star Spangled Banner would be playing during the medal ceremony.

In the end, Kiefer came out on top beating her teammate 15-6.

FYI: Follow all the AANHPI athletes at the Paris Olympics.

Clearly, Kiefer used her nimble footwork and quickness to score   point after point, while Scruggs was continually on the defense. Kiefer was particularly effective in close-in sparring.

In her win, Kiefer was the first American, and only the third woman, to win two gold medals in fencing. Assuredly, she's the only Asian American to accomplish that feat.

The raucous Paris crowd was in complete contrast o Kiefer's first gold medal in Tokyo, which was conducted under strict COVID restrictions. The 30-year old from Lexington, Kentrucky celebrated by first by screaming in victory and joyfully perouting with the American flag streaming behind her.

Asked about her future and if this might be her final Olympics, she deferred.

“I’m trying to think about Gerek’s event tomorrow and our team event and a men’s foil team event” Kiefer said. “That’s as far as we’re getting into the future for now.”

The Gerek she referred to is her husband, Gerek Meinhardt, a Taiwanese American who is a two-time Olympic bronze medalist in men's foil and who will compete in two events in Paris.

SCREEN CAPTURE

After the match, Lee Kiefer realizes what her victory at the Paris Olympics means.

The Asian American couple are medical students at the University of Kentucky who have taken leave from their studies to pursue their Olympic dreams.

Since enrolling at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine alongside her husband, the self-described “pretty shy, reserved person” has become an advocate of reproductive justice. Kiefer volunteers as a helpline volunteer with the Kentucky Health Justice Network, a nonprofit that provides funding and education for Kentuckians seeking abortion care. 

Kiefer will return to compete her studies next year. But after Sunday’s masterclass, the prospect of defending her title on at the 2028 Los Angeles Games surely may be too tempting.

“No matter how much I tried to prepare, there’s still so much pressure I put on myself to just fence well and stay present,” a jubilant Kiefer said after her match. “Each day was a rollercoaster, but here we are at the top.”

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

2024 Paris Olympics: Why isn't table tennis more popular in the US?

TEAM USA

Lily Zhang prepares to serve in a recent match.

If you've watched any of the table tennis matches in the Paris Olympics, you know that this is not a game for the slow of foot or weak of heart. It's fast. It's intense.

But even though the game has been around for a lot longer than pickle board, you don't see cities and schools spending thousands of dollars building facilities for the sport.

FYI: Follow all the AANHPI athletes at the Paris Olympics.

Watching the Olympics, one can't help but notice the majority of the US team is made up of Asian Americans. Badminton is another sport that suffers the same kind of ignominious reputation.

“There’s a lot of misconceptions that we’re not true Americans. I’ve experienced a lot of comments from people or even on social media, where people were like, ‘Of course, the U.S. imported these people from China,’” says team member Lily Zhan in an NBC article. “They don’t understand we were born here. We were raised here. We grew up here. We’re just as American as any other athlete on the team.”

READ the entire NBC article here.

Unlike others sports, there is no institutional support for the sport. For those players who want to expand their skills beeyond the rec room or family basement, it is necessary to get a private coach. So it's a matter of family finances and thatnarrows the pool of potential athlete and expanding the sport's popularity.

TEAM USA

The USA's  table tennis team, including coaches and players is seeking its first Olympic medal.

Three members of the US team is headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, a hotbed of table tennis and where there are clubs and foundations to help foster and train up and coming players.

“I don’t know if it’s because we have never been able to medal in the sport,” Zhang tells NBC “But then it becomes a cycle. If we don’t have the funding, it’s hard to improve and grow the sport to be able to medal. We can never really burst out of that bubble.”

Indeed, NBC's Sunday coverage failed to even mention the results of the table tennis team, much less showing any of the matches.  

FYI: Olympic coverage the 2024 Paris Olympics, will broadcast live across NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and GOLF Channel. Peacock is the official US streaming home, streaming every sport and all 329 medal events.

Zhang is ranked 29th in the world and is considered the USA's best female table tennnis player the country has ever produced. 

Zhang, who is from Palo Alto, California, is 28-years old. She realizes that time is not on her side.

“This could be my last Olympics,”Zhang tells ther hometown newspaper, the Mercury News.  “I’m just going to try to savor every single moment out there.”

Sunday, she began what could be her quest for a medal by beating her Lebanese opponent Mariana Sahakian 4-0,  

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

2024 Paris Olympics: Here are the AANHPI athletes to follow

INSTAGRAM

Members of the USA Table Tennis team got to meet NBA star Steph Curry during the
2024 Paris Olympics opening Parade of Nations.

Representation matters! If you're like me, always seeking that AANHPI thread intertwined in the American quilt, the Olympics provides a microcosm of the United States. The diversity of the almost 600  American competitors is a great example to the world the role of immigrants in the United States. 

The 2024 Paris Olympics officially began last night. Instead of the teams entering a filled stadium,  the parade of nations floated down the Seine on a flotilla of tour boats. Oh, those French!

The list below of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander athletes at the Paris Games is likely incomplete. Unless otherwise noted, the athletes are representing the United States. I included those athletes of Asian descent who live and train in the US but for various reasons, have chosen to compete for other countries. 

The Philippines, for example, made it a strategy to improve their world presence by recruiting  athletes from the Philippine diaspora, especially those who developed their skills by living in the US, which has better training facilities and developmental programs for athletes.

For additional background, I provided links to earlier articles posted on this blog, Views From the Edge.

Breaking

• Sunny Choi
• Logan Edra

Women's Gymnastics

• Sunisa Lee
• Leanne Wong
• Aleah Finnegan (Philippines)
• Levi Jung-Ruvivar (Philippines)
•  Emma Malabuyo (Philippines)

Men's Gymnastics

• Asher Hong

Men's Fencing

• Alexander Massialas
• Gerek Meinhardt
• Mitchell Saron

Women's Fencing

• Lee Kiefer
• Samantha Catantan (Philippines)

Husband and wife, Lee Kiefer and Gerek Meinhartdt, will represent the USA in fencing.

Women's Volleyball

• Justine Wong-Orantes

Men's Volleyball

• Erik Shoji
• Micah Christenson, 
• Micah Ma’a
• Garrett Muagututia.

Badminton

• Winson Chu
• Jennie Gai
• Anne Ku
• Kerry Xu
• Joshua Yuan
• Beiwen Zhang

Table Tennis

• Kanak Jha
• Michael Jung
• Amy Wang
• Lily Zhang

Filipino Hawaiian Carissa Moore

Surfing

• Carissa Moore

Artistic Swimming

• Calista Liu
• Jacklyn Luu
• Megumi Field
• Audrey Kwon

Swimming

• Torri Huske

Women's Water Polo

• Emily Ausmus

Men's Water Polo

• Johnny Hooper

Skateboarding

• Sky Brown (Great Britain)

Men's Golf

• Collin Morikawa

Women's Golf

• Lilia Viu
• Rose Zhang

Judo

• Jack Yonezuka

Men's Rugby

• Naima Fuala'au
• Lucas LaCamp

Women's Rugby

• Alena Olsen
• Alexandra Sedrick

Shooting

• Ada Korkhin

400m hurdles

• Lauren Hoffman (Philippines)

Men's Tennis

• Rajeev Ram

Women's Tennis

• Jessica Pegula
• Naomi Osaka (Japan)

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge. There may be more additions to the list as the Games continue, so check back periodically.

2024 Paris Olympics: Two Asian Americans will ;break' for the US

Breakers Sunni Choi, left, and Logan Edra will represent the United States at the Paris Olympics.

Don't call it breakdancing. From the streets of New York where it started to the Paris Olympics, Breaking is the Games' newest  sport.

With a four-member, half the USA's team are Asian American. The two women are Korean American Sunni Choi and Filipino American Logan Edra.

Choi, 35, a former gymnast, left her job as an executive for Estee Lauder and the high expectations of her immigrant parents, to do competitive breaking full-time.

Unlike other choreographed sports like gymnastics and ice-dancing, breaking is not judged on a point system. The breaking events, which kick off Aug. 9, involve one-on-one battles during which hip-hop DJs provide the beats and competitors take 60-second turns known as “throw downs.” They choose from three broad categories of moves: “top rock,” or standing dances; “freeze,” a halted position on heads or hands; and “down rock,” or flashy, acrobatic spins.

FYI: The Breaking competition is August 8 and 9. Olympic coverage the 2024 Paris Olympics, which will broadcast live across NBC, USA Network, E!, CNBC and GOLF Channel. Peacock is the official U.S streaming home, streaming every sport and all 329 medal events.

“So many people are choreographing, and it’s all about who can do the most difficult move stronger, higher, faster than everybody else,” the Tennessee-born Choi told the New York Times.  “That was always part of breaking, but breaking was also about just self-expression and getting out there and having fun and freestyle was such a big part of it for so many people.”

Breaking served a different pupose for the 21-eyear old Edra, aka Logistx. “Breaking is from the Bronx in the 70’s from hip-hop culture, and personally, I’ve always felt connected to breaking because it was one of the only things that allowed me to fully escape from the pain that comes with life,” Edra reveals to Character Media.

“There were a lot of traumas and hardships I had to get through as a kid, but when I'm breaking, it helps me find release from those and balance,” said Edra on her Red Bull artist page. “Breaking was born out of struggle, so I feel at home and like I belong when I'm dancing. When I break, I feel like a superhero. I feel empowered."

Not only is the San Diego-born Logan representing the USA in Paris, she acknowledges the responsibility of representing the Filipino American community. 

" It’s an emotional question for me because there are Filipinos around the world — there are a lot of us — [but] I feel lost sometimes because there aren’t too many role models out there representing [us] on large platforms. 

"I hope I can be an example for other young Filipinas and anyone in general. Sometimes it’s very stressful, and sometimes it’s very empowering. It’s not easy because I didn’t really plan to get as much visibility as I have now in my career. Getting recognition for my accomplishments and how I represent [myself] brings a sense of responsibility; there are other young Filipino girls out there, [and] maybe they see me and relate. My first mentor happened to be another Filipina B-Girl, and she is one of my best friends. What she did for me, I want to be that for other females. It wasn’t just about winning; it was also about connecting — being a support and being a big sister, too."

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Quick! Who was the first Asian American to win an Olympic gold medal for the US?

Victoria Manalo Draves had to change her name in order to secure practice sites.

As the 2024 Paris Olympics begins, it is time once again to remind people of Victoria Manalo Draves, who overcame racial discrimination to become the first Asian American to win an Olympic gold medal for the US.

By the United States Olympic & Pralympic Museum

Born in the South of Market of San Francisco, Victoria Manalo, Vicki Draves adopted her mother’s maiden name, Taylor, for competition in order to escape racial prejudice in the 1940s. Regardless of how it is recorded, Draves will be etched into the books as one of the greatest divers in Olympic history.

Born to an English mother and Filipino father, the Manalo family faced heavy discrimination, as interracial marriage was heavily frowned upon at the time. Draves was forced to train in segregated pools that only allowed people of color to participate once a week. They were drained and cleaned shortly after. 

RELATED: San Francisco Hall of Fame eludes Victoria Draves

With much support from her family and her swimming coach, Lyle Draves – whom she later married – Draves won a national diving championship at the age of 16 and competed two years later at the London 1948 Olympic Games.

Victoria Manalo Draves receives her gold medal at the London Games.

In London, she took home gold medals in the 3-meter springboard and the 10-meter platform, becoming not only the first woman to sweep the diving events, but also becoming the first Asian American to win an Olympic medal. Draves was named one of Team USA’s best athletes by Life Magazine for her accomplishment. 

Following her athletic career, Draves joined Buster Crabbe’s “Aqua Parade,” a popular traveling water extravaganza show that had her performing across the United States and Europe. She later settled down and started a swimming and diving training center with her husband. 

Draves passed away on April 11, 2010 at the age of 85. A park was named after her in her old South of Market neighborhood, which has been disgnated the Filipino Cultural District, or SOMA Pilipinas.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.

Kamala Harris campaign stirs up excitement among AANHPI

Vice President Kamala Harris could become the first US President who is part Asian.

The idea that in one generation, the daughter of immigrants could be running for President of the United States is the latest and best example of the American Dream.

Vice President Kamala Harris emergence as the frontrunner for the Democrat's candidate for the Presidency has sparked new energy in the AANHPI communities.

On Tuesday, in one of her first campaign stops since receiving President Biden''s endorsement, Harris visited a Hmong shopping center and met with Hmong business owners.

Campaign staffers in Minnesota admitted that the stop in the heart of the Hmong community, the largest Asian American group in the state, is a deliberate strategy to shore up support among the AANHPI communities.

Shivanthi Sathanandan, vice chair of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, said “Representation matters.” referring to Harris mixed racial heritage. Her mother is from India and her father is from Jamaica. 

“The energy that comes from seeing someone from a shared culture, whether they’re Black or Asian American or South Asian or just a woman, that energy is contagious, and it’s exciting.”

When Harris launched her campaign for President in 2019, the national media emphasized her Black heritage, basically overlooking her Ssouth Asian roots. That gave the initial impression that the Oakland-born Harris was ignoring her Indian American background so it took a while for the Asian American communities to warm up to her.

It took numerous meetings with Asian American communities and leadership for Harris to overcome  the initial impression pushed by mainstream media.

Harris' big hurdle is to let the nation know more about her. As Vice President, Harris was a sounding board and advisor for Biden and as a good soldier, made appearances, nationally and internationally, in support of the administration. However, in that supporting role, she was unable to make an impression as someone of Asian American background.

In a survey asking American respondents to name the best known Asian Americans, her name rarely came up falling behind the late Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan, who is not even American.

But during the 2024 on campaign trail, she has emphasized her Asian background. A week before Biden withdrew from the Presidential race, Harris was in Las Vegas to launch the AANHPI for Biden-Harris coalition. A week later, a day before Biden's announcement, she was the keynote speaker at a Presidential Town Hall of AANHPI leaders in Philadelphia.

New excitement among AANHPI voters

Indeed, Harris ascendency to the top of the ticket has stirred up the AANHPI communities, which in a poll showed strong support for the Biden-Harris ticket despite an 8% percent drop from 54% in 2022 to 46% this year. The strong majority still tops Trump which garnered only 31% support among AANHPI voters.

“We have been saying for a while that the 24 million strong Asian-American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander community is doing well but wasn’t politically engaged in a big way because no one was talking to them. Then you get Harris running for president in 2020, becoming the vice president and there was a burst of energy in the community. Representation matters,” said Shekar Narasimhan the chairman and founder of the AAPI Victory Fund, one of the first of its kind super Political Action Committees (PACs) that supports Asian American candidates.

Harris helped the AAPI Victory Fund create a network with other caucuses of minority groups such as Blacks and Hispanics. “We are smallest of the three but the fastest growing group and have a lot of resources. Harris is aware of the potential. She will tap into it, and her presence will also galvanise the community,” he told the Hindustan Times.

“I join President Biden in fully endorsing Kamala Harris to be our Democratic nominee for President of the United States. I was with Vice President Harris when she spoke at our Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote Presidential Town Hall in Philadelphia last week and for our AANHPI community she made clear that she is one of us, she hears us, and she will empower us. We have seen through her leadership and action that she has always been ready and able to step up to lead this country as its commander-in-chief, and I am one hundred percent behind her,” said Hawaii Rep. Jill Tokuda, vice chair of ASPIRE PAC, which seeks t empower and encourage AANHPI to run for office.

“Representation matters. The first woman. The first South Asian. The first Asian American. The first African American woman. From California. All those things matter to me,” Harini Krishnan told KQED. Krishnan is a long-time Harris supporter from Silicon Valley and the national director for South Asians for Harris, which this week switched its name from South Asians for Biden.

One of the first endorsements for Harris came from the Progressive Caucus in Congress led by Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington.

"We had the quickest endorsement vote for Kamala Harris as our nominee. I think within a couple of hours, it was done, with a supermajority of all of our members being on board, and so I think this is a great moment for the nation," said Jayapal. 

"As a woman of color myself, ... as a South Asian American, to have her at the top of the ticket is going to push new momentum into our voters across the country."

Harris outreach to Democratic delegations was successful. By Tuesday, she had enough delegates' votes committed to vote for her at the Democrats National Convention in August.

Poll: Harris gains ground

Indeed, by Wednesday, three days after Biden withdrew from the campaign for President and endosed Harris, new polls showed that Harris had closed the gap against Trump to virtual tie. Harris improved the Democrats' chances compared to Biden vs. Trump.

A CNN poll conducted in the days after Biden's announcement, Trump had 49% support among registered voters nationwide to Harris’ 46%, well within the margin of error.r. That’s a closer contest than earlier CNN polling this year had found on the matchup between Biden and Trump.

"This very well could be a game changer. If we look at 2020 election and saw Indian-American community energized in a significant way both in terms of voters and donors," said Karthick Ramakrishnan, researcher at UC Berkeley and founder of AAPI Data. 

"We did a survey of Asian Americans in April and May and favorability ratings for Kamala Harris among Indian Americans were about the same as for Biden and it wasn't great for either of them. It was much better than Trump's approval ratings. This really shakes up the race in a huge way." 

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AANHPI perspective, follow me on Threads, on X or at the blog Views From the Edge.