EDISON, NJ – Last Tuesday, Sam Joshi, an Asian American won his bid for election to be the next mayor of the New Jersey city of Edison. He was congratulated by Governor Phil Murphy for his achievement.
“Congratulations to @SamipJoshi on a historic win in Edison, where he will soon become the first Asian American Mayor of this incredibly diverse and vibrant community,” Murphy tweeted…or at least one of his inexperienced staffers tweeted.
It sounded great for the Governor to recognize diversity and acknowledge people of minority descent ascending to public office, but the statement virtually erased the actual real history of Edison.
From 2006 until 2010, a man named Jun H. Choi served as the mayor of Edison. Choi was not only the first Asian American mayor of Edison, he was New Jersey’s first-ever Asian American elected to be mayor of any major New Jersey town or city.
Choi is an extremely talented entrepreneur and successful politician who battled racist attacks from the media, who some at the time called him “not a real American” because of his Korean heritage.
A correction is in order for Phil Murphy.