Source: Politics<\/p>\n
1 00:00:00,740 –> 00:00:04,940 >> So tell me like when we have the last couple of days been like for you. 2 00:00:05,340 –> 00:00:10,710 >> They’ve been a whirlwind incredibly exciting very energizing and 3 00:00:10,710 –> 00:00:16,380 just so incredibly grateful for this opportunity that the city of Cincinnati has 4 00:00:16,380 –> 00:00:22,440 given me to lead. You know we made history on a lot of fronts on Tuesday night. 5 00:00:22,440 –> 00:00:28,140 A historical margin of victory. The first Asian and Indian 6 00:00:28,140 –> 00:00:33,600 mayor of Cincinnati the first Asian and Indian mayor. And in a Midwestern city 7 00:00:33,600 –> 00:00:38,730 know I’m half Tibetan and half Indian and you’ll have to check me on this but I’m not sure there are 8 00:00:38,730 –> 00:00:43,690 any other Tibetan mayors let alone elected officials in the country. 9 00:00:43,770 –> 00:00:49,620 >> So for on a lot a lot of levels I’m just incredibly proud of the 10 00:00:49,620 –> 00:00:55,050 work that we have done of the opportunity that I have been given and what it says about 11 00:00:55,050 –> 00:01:00,870 Cincinnati as a city electing the first Asian-American mayor in the Midwest 12 00:01:00,870 –> 00:01:06,480 is the story that I want people to know that Cincinnati is a welcoming place 13 00:01:06,480 –> 00:01:11,570 where everyone has an incredible opportunity to achieve their dream. 14 00:01:11,580 –> 00:01:17,070 >> Well you know I like folks with with you nicknames like my name is Barack and I haven’t met another Braxton. 15 00:01:17,070 –> 00:01:22,530 So you know I’m not sure how many more tabs you you’ve met but certainly I’m assuming 16 00:01:22,530 –> 00:01:27,960 you haven’t come across many in your line of work as a politician. I 17 00:01:27,960 –> 00:01:33,510 have never been told that I’m I might need to change my name because it may hurt by 18 00:01:33,510 –> 00:01:39,240 my my my career. So tell me about that experience and what would that experience was 19 00:01:39,240 –> 00:01:44,360 like and why you decided not to change your name. 20 00:01:45,730 –> 00:01:51,330 >> You know I haven’t. I have not yet met and Aftab I’ve I’ve I’ve been looking 21 00:01:51,330 –> 00:01:56,910 but so far I’m the only only one I’ve met you know. As an aside when Facebook 22 00:01:56,910 –> 00:02:02,100 when I first logged onto Facebook back in the early 2000s the first thing I did was 23 00:02:02,100 –> 00:02:07,650 search for other tabs on a friend and I befriended all of them. So I’m friends 24 00:02:07,650 –> 00:02:13,950 with quite a few of them online but I haven’t yet met. You know for Asian-American and 25 00:02:13,950 –> 00:02:19,110 Indian American for API candidates or candidates of color or candidates with ethnic names and 26 00:02:19,110 –> 00:02:21,810 ethnic backgrounds politics is just harder. 27 00:02:21,810 –> 00:02:27,060 >> There’s there’s a greater barrier to entry. It requires us to have to work harder to have 28 00:02:27,060 –> 00:02:32,250 to work smarter more creatively more innovatively. And that certainly was 29 00:02:32,250 –> 00:02:37,680 my experience in 2015 when I started telling people Democrats that 30 00:02:37,680 –> 00:02:43,230 I wanted to run for office. They they just flat up flat out told me that a brown dude named Aftab 31 00:02:43,230 –> 00:02:50,070 can’t can’t run and win that I’d have to change my name or make some kind of other accommodation. 32 00:02:50,340 –> 00:02:57,090 >> And unfortunately that’s that story is not unique to me. I know Asian-Americans face 33 00:02:57,090 –> 00:03:02,490 this this challenge of of you 34 00:03:02,490 –> 00:03:08,010 know of what is perceived as a political liability with their ethnicities and names you 35 00:03:08,010 –> 00:03:13,740 know certainly it’s even harder if people who want to serve have have accents 36 00:03:13,740 –> 00:03:19,740 . However we decided to run anyway in 37 00:03:19,740 –> 00:03:25,320 2015 and we proved a lot of people wrong. We worked incredibly hard. 38 00:03:25,320 –> 00:03:30,990 >> We were we were creative in our approach and we were able to be successful and by getting elected 39 00:03:30,990 –> 00:03:36,630 to the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts in 2016 I became the first Democrat in 100 years to 40 00:03:36,630 –> 00:03:41,970 be elected to that position. And you know when I was growing up there weren’t 41 00:03:41,970 –> 00:03:47,510 a lot of a lot of politicians who looked like me in the 80s and 90s. 42 00:03:47,510 –> 00:03:53,440 But I’m I’m I’m so grateful that that that has since changed several API 43 00:03:53,440 –> 00:03:58,890 candidates and elected us have blazed this path for me. I’m standing on their shoulders and 44 00:03:58,890 –> 00:04:04,350 there’s a whole generation of people behind me who look like me who are hungry to serve who are not 45 00:04:04,350 –> 00:04:06,690 just happy to be here but who are ready to lead.\n <\/p>\n