Saratoga Springs Mayor Ron Kim, elected in 2022 as the first mayor of a major New York city, has stirred conversations by revealing that his family endured racial slurs during his 2009 campaign.
At the time, the election was fiercely contested, and Kim’s ascendancy was met with challenges from several other candidates who made disparaging remarks about him. He emerged victorious in the Democratic Party’s primary in June 2022 and secured the mayoral position by garnering the highest number of votes in the general election.
In an interview with local media on August 14, Kim shared that he had to endure disparaging remarks from supporters of his opponent during the 2009 mayoral election, including terms like “North Korean dictator,” “communist,” and “Kim Jong-il.”
“It was an unfortunate and trying period; I had to endure such hurtful words even within the realm of local politics,” he remarked, further adding, “There were also individuals aligned with the opposition candidate who targeted my son ‘Gook’ (a derogatory term for Asians), who was a high school student.”
Born in 1955 in Schenectady, New York, he has resided in Saratoga Springs for over 30 years. A graduate of Colgate University and the University of Chicago with a master’s degree in public policy, he also holds a degree from Fordham University School of Law.
No stranger to local politics, Kim was a member and later Chairperson of the Saratoga Springs Zoning Board of Appeals prior to his mayoral bid. Subsequently, he was elected Commissioner of Public Safety and served two terms dedicated to the city.
Meanwhile, Kim recently revealed receiving racist voice messages after attending a rally condemning white supremacist groups. The voice message contained derogatory slurs targeting various minority groups including gays, Asians, and others. As the mayor, who took office earlier this year, actively participates in public events against Asian hate crimes, authorities believe he has become a focal point for white supremacist groups’ racial targeting.
In response to these attacks, the Saratoga Springs Police Department has committed to utilizing voice analysis to trace the origins of the messages, launching a public investigation focused on groups that have publicly employed Asian slurs and derogatory language. Concurrently, the city council has issued a statement demanding severe punishment for the perpetrators of these crimes and soliciting the public’s cooperation in identifying them.
Saratoga Springs remains a predominantly white neighborhood, with 88 percent of its population being white and only 3 percent identifying as Asian.
BY BRIAN CHOI [choi.inseong@koreadaily.com]
