NEW YORK (VINnews) — Councilman Chaim Deutsch stood up for New York’s Asian community last month, after board member Dr. Jackie Cody referred to Asians as “yellow folks” and “yellow children” in a group email string for members of parental boards across the city.
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Deutsch attended a Community Education Council 22 meeting together with dozens of protestors, and used his microphone time to issue a strong rebuke for using such unacceptable language.
Deutsch said that anti-Asian discrimination deserves the same opposition as discrimination against any other group.
“When the Muslim community is attacked in our city, we all stand up for them,” he said, as reported by the New York Post. “When the Jewish community is attacked, we stand up for them. When our black and brown communities are attacked, we all stand up for them. When the Asian community is attacked, we will stand up for them!”
Deutsch would not release the microphone when his allotted time was up, as he continued to make his point.
“Throw me out!” Deutsch shouted. “When someone says something that is hurtful to an individual, that person needs to be suspended!”
Ironically, despite Deutsch’s strong message of unity and anti-Discrimination, he is receiving some backlash for his efforts. Board member Jessica Byrne wrote a letter to City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, protesting Deutsch’s actions.
“I cannot let the disrespectful and demeaning behavior of an elected city official while addressing volunteer members of a community council go unchallenged,” the letter stated.
Byrne alleges that Deutsch “invaded the personal space” of “at least” one member, and also complains that he went over his speaking limit.
Byrne says that the Community Education Council she leads is mostly made up of minority women who “have been victims of hate speech and discrimination” and that “we cannot center ourselves or our work by one-upping our own painful experiences.”
According to Byrne, any other member of the public who behaved as Deutsch has would have ended up in handcuffs.
Chancellor Carranza subsequently stated that he will not use his authority to remove Jackie Cody from the board, despite his ability to do so.
The Asian community had planned a protest for December 3, to protest Jackie Cody’s language and the lack of action on the part of local authorities.
INBOX: Tonight (12/3) the Asian community will be protesting at CEC 22's meeting. Education Law 2590-L permits Chancellor Carranza to remove a CEC member yet he has stated he will not remove Jackie Cody for her use of an anti-Asian slur. @ChaimDeutsch https://t.co/JpVUzB52yX
— DOEcorruption (@DoEcorruption) December 3, 2019
Don’t you know African Americans can’t be racist, unless of course they are Republicans.
HYPOCRITES! If Councilman Deutsch had used such language, they would have been calling for his head on a platter!
Hes right but blacks are angels remember they have only love like farrakhan, jerry wright, sharpton etc.
Chinese are hard working people. Unlike the others. Hamavin yavin
Hope Mr. Deutsch does run for Borough President.
It is a joke that she can sit there at these public CDEC meetings and to be staring at her phone for the entire meeting. When you don’t have compassion, it is easy to believe that she can not run her own charity well.