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My story, anywhere in the world,

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in any other country, it couldn't happen.
Only in Canada,

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only in Vancouver, which is so inclusive.

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Where are you from?

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I'm from Beijing.

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From Beijing. You've been here,
I'd guess, 20-plus years? Right.

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I came abroad as a student.
20 years ago,

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I came to Vancouver
as an international student.

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Back then—can you tell us?
Back then, you'd graduated...

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just graduated over there, right?
Just graduated in China?

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Yes. I did my undergrad in China.

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Then your situation is similar to mine.

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Yes, very similar.

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I also finished university in China,
and then came here to study.

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Yes, it was the same for me. In China,

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after finishing my undergrad,
I came here for grad school.

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I did a master's, and after that,
I stayed here.

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I also came as an international student

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to an unfamiliar environment,

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didn't know anyone, and back then
my English wasn't good either.

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and then, step by step, up to now,

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as a Vancouver city councillor.

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Your English must be very fluent now.

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Yes, well, that's now.
It's been so many years, after all.

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But I'm just saying, my experience—

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then later, through our democratic system,

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being elected, in Vancouver's history,

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as the first city councillor
from mainland China.

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You're the first, right?

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The first, the first.

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From the mainland. I was thinking
about this yesterday, too.

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I also wanted to ask you:
do you count as

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one of several, or the only one?

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In Vancouver's history,
there have been 13 in total,

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counting me: 13 Chinese Canadian
city councillors.

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But the previous 12 all had
Hong Kong or Taiwan backgrounds.

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So I'm really grateful
to Vancouver and Canada.

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It's this diversity and inclusion
that made my

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story possible.

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So I'm also especially grateful
to those who, before me,

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came to this city, came to

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this country. I feel that without our

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Chinese immigrants, generation
after generation,

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working hard, I wouldn't
be where I am today.

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So what twist of fate

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led you into politics?

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Well, I've always been
interested in politics.

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So after I came to Canada,

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finished my studies and stayed on to work,

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I'd been volunteering all along,

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supporting other candidates,

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helping them campaign. Then in

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2021, Ken Sim's team approached me,

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hoping I'd run for city council.
At the time,

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I was reluctant. Why?

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Because I'd be giving up a lot. Back then,

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I'd just had a baby,

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my one and only child.

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We'd only just had
our baby in November 2021.

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At the time, I felt

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I'd have to give up far too much,

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and my child was still so young.

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But later, I was truly moved by

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Mayor Ken Sim's vision.

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He really wanted to make this city better.

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I also worried about my child

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growing up in Vancouver:

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later on, could they find a better job?
Could they

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afford a home?
Would they face racial discrimination?

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So actually, I was moved by his sincerity,

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and in 2022,
I decided to step up and join him

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in running for Vancouver city council.

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So over these four years, do you feel

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you've made sacrifices,
or felt a sense of accomplishment?

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Both, of course:
sacrifices and a sense of accomplishment.

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I believe this city,
in my view, has become

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better, and that's a very good thing.

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Because a better city isn't just

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for my child, it's for everyone.

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In these four years in office,

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how many hours a day
do you work on average?

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Honestly, the hours are very long.
No exaggeration:

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I work 15 hours a day,

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at least six days a week,

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sometimes seven, with no

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rest at all, because weekends

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are even busier,
with all kinds of events to attend.

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My longest stretch,

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I remember, was 32 days in a row

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without a single day off,
working 15 hours a day.

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A while ago, I remember

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seeing a news post from you

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about how, on the ballot,

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you added your own name in Chinese.
And before that,

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this may have been opposed, and then you

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actually took it to the Supreme Court,
was it?

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The BC Supreme Court.

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The BC Supreme Court.
Then, after a hearing,

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it was approved.

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That's great. For us

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Chinese Canadians, winning more rights

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is a really big step.

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So I think this

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is very good not just
for our Chinese community

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but for all minority communities.

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Especially for us
first-generation immigrants.

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We weren't born in this country.

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We already had our names
where we came from.

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If we want a new generation of

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immigrants to take a better part in

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politics, and in public service,

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then we should create
better conditions for them.

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How do you motivate yourself every day?

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I think, actually, the pressure
I put on myself

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is pretty high. The pressure
I put on myself,

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because since I'm the so-called

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first city councillor from mainland China,

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if I don't do a good job,

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then maybe in the future, for us
Chinese Canadians, especially

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Chinese who came from the mainland,
especially

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first-generation immigrants,
getting into politics

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would be very hard. So I have to...

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From my point of view...

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Because you're the first.

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And as the first, you also
have to be the benchmark.

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Right. So I put a lot
of pressure on myself

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to be a good role model.

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And you really have done
a great job already.

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No, there's still a lot I need

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to do better. I'd only give myself...

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if 10 is a perfect score,

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I think I'd only give myself a 7.

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In these years, especially these four,
do you feel

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it's taken a physical toll on you,

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or not?

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A lot of people say that in the past—
four years ago,

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my hair was still black. Now,

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there's lots of grey hair. I look older.

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A lot of people don't know
I was born in the '80s.

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You were born in the '80s?

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We should shake hands.
I was born in the '80s too.

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Yes.

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Right. So there probably is
that kind of effect.

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But I think making the city

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better now, it's worth it.