Bridging Divides in Indiana with the State's Youngest and First Asian-American State Representative
Written by: Marisa Sanchez
Chris Chyung spoke to the Fall 2020 Global Leaders in early October to discuss his position as District 15’s Democratic member of the Indiana House of Representatives. Chyung is the first Asian-American state representative in Indiana’s history, while also being the youngest member of the legislature.
Just six days prior to our CHLI Connect session, the first presidential debate aired across the nation. Headlines cited division and urgency for unity and participation. Amid a global pandemic, a presidential election, and deepening uncertainty about our future, my question for Chris circled back to an article I read in the Indy Star by Kaitlin Lange.
Lange introduces Chris as a new member of the Indiana legislature while highlighting the historic nature of his position. In the article, Chris addresses negative remarks he received on the campaign trail, aimed at his ethnicity.
In response, he states, “I think outrage is the new American mood in a lot of ways and understandably so on some of the extreme stuff, but now in my position as a legislator, I'm just trying to lead by saying no to the outrage.”
With this context in mind, my first question for Chris was, “Several of our speakers have expressed increasing polarization in American politics. Do you think politics is personal, or do you find the need to separate the two to find nonpartisan support?”
Chris answered, “I wish politics was not personal. A lot of times it feels like we should be focusing on the issues, helping the most destitute members of our society get back on the rungs of economic prosperity.” He goes on to say, “Look at the issue in the prism of your opponents, of their viewpoint. That’s what is going to matter, that is what is going to move the spectrum.”
For me, politics is personal. At times, I find it difficult to maintain a temperance that Chris displays. It’s personal when families are separated at a border that New Mexico shares. It’s personal when our native community makes headlines for being ravaged by the pandemic. It’s personal when my state is at the bottom of the list for education and the top for crime.
Although these issues are personal, emotional, and historically pervasive in my community, as Chris shows us, the solution is not outrage. He champions finding commonalities and expanding thought, creating a path to a democracy that is truly representative of its inhabitants.
The vision of CHLI, Advancing the Hispanic Community's Diversity of Thought, has enabled me to approach my own outrage as a tool to create change and advocate for the issues most personal to me. The urgent call for unity in our country can be answered by harnessing our outrage into action and fostering diversity of thought. In the words of Chris Chyung, “this is what is going to move the spectrum.”