Welcome to our weekly Friday Q&A, “The Sitdown.” Today we chop it up with Democratic Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland, whose district includes Lakewood and Olympia, the state capital of Washington. She weighs in on how the Atlanta spa-shootings affected her and why she believes some of her freshman colleagues came to Washington to sow controversy — not to pass legislation.
“It definitely feels longer than 100 days.”
That’s how Rep. Marilyn Strickland responds to questions about how her first months in Congress are going.
Since she was sworn in, there’s been an insurrection, a second impeachment of a former president, an inauguration of a new president and a slew of mass shootings.
The one in Georgia last month hit particularly close to home. Not just because she spent her college years there attending an Atlanta-area HBCU, but also because the brazen attack claimed the lives of eight people, six of them Asian women.
Like Vice President Kamala Harris, Strickland made history this year as a Black-Asian woman elected to national office. She’s the first person of both African American and Korean heritage to serve in Congress. The South Korea native is also the first Black woman ever elected to the U.S. House in her state’s history.
As she sees it, her identity makes her a natural coalition builder. And one example of her coalition building is her dual membership in both the Congressional Black Caucus and the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucuses — again, just like Harris before she was elected vice president.
Strickland chatted with The Recast about her biracial identity, the Atlanta shootings and why she says the murder trial of Derek Chauvin will have lasting implications on whether people can trust government institutions, including the police.
⧫⧫⧫
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
THE RECAST: Do you consider yourself a trailblazer?
REP. STRICKLAND: I am definitely a trailblazer, but not necessarily by intention. For me, this is really about serving the public and having a deep understanding and appreciation for the fact that too many people came before me to fight for basic rights, basic human rights, basic civil rights. So in many ways, I have a responsibility to serve.
THE RECAST: Quite a bit has been made about your ethnic makeup. You’re biracial: African American father, Korean mother. You were born in Seoul, South Korea, and moved to the U.S. at a young age. Do you have to constantly tell people that you’re biracial? Because I would imagine that most people at first glance think you’re Black.
REP. STRICKLAND: That’s a really interesting question. The answer is really based on where I am and I mean that literally. So, I grew up here in the Pacific Northwest and there’s a large military population. So it’s not unusual to see people who are mixed race. Until I told some of my classmates at Clark Atlanta University, they did not know I was half Korean. And so sometimes it depends on who I’m with, where I am. Sometimes how I physically present, whether I have been in the sun for a long time and I’m wearing my hair natural or straight.
Every week, we profile the diverse and influential leaders who are shaking up old-school politics.
Who should we profile next? Let us know. Email us at therecast@politico.com.
THE RECAST: As a public figure, do you always find yourself having to answer that question or reminding people that, yes, I’m Korean American? I’m thinking about this through the lens of another trailblazer Vice President Kamala Harris, who, for most of her public career, identified as Black.
REP. STRICKLAND: When I was running for mayor of Tacoma, my kickoff was held at the home of a dear friend and mentor and businesswoman, Leah Armstrong, who’s Korean American. And if you saw a photo of the event, it literally looked like the United Nations. And then when I was sworn in as mayor of Tacoma, the Korean press was there in full effect. And so having to tell people, it comes up in conversation. But if you look at my policymaking history and where I’m present, it is obvious that I belong to both communities.
THE RECAST: You wore the traditional Korean gown, a hanbok, at your swearing-in. Many remarked that it was a very powerful statement to wear it. Talk to me about what the significance of that was for you.
REP. STRICKLAND: It was significant for many reasons. As you know, we were sworn in during Covid and so my friends and family could not attend the event in person, and especially my mother, who is advanced in age. So I wanted to honor her. I wanted her to be able to spot me out of the crowded floor during a swearing-in ceremony. But I also wanted to send a message about honoring my culture and my history. I wanted to send a message that the U.S. House of Representatives is the people’s house and it belongs to all of us and really send a message about what it means to be American.
THE RECAST: Let me ask about your connection to Clark Atlanta and the shooting in Atlanta last month. We’re talking about a city that many people think of as majority Black and having this tragic shooting in which six of the victims were Asian American women. Talk to me a little bit about how that struck you.
REP. STRICKLAND: Atlanta has this brand that is very much about being a Black middle-class Mecca, an opportunity for education. And I’m a product of that. And so if we go back to that tragic shooting that took place at these spas that targeted Asian American women, it was something that I felt compelled to speak up about because of the violence that’s been happening for over a year now — targeting Asian Americans. We know there’s a connection between Covid and the way the former administration and his enablers talked about it. They were racist. They were bigoted. If you look at the stats, there’s been a [nearly] 150 percent increase in crimes committed against Asian Americans that started in 2020.
THE RECAST: Georgia investigators have not given much on the shooter’s motive, but the shooter is not currently facing hate crime charges. Do you see this as a hate crime?
REP. STRICKLAND: I definitely saw it as a hate crime. And I believe there’s a lot of people in this country who are Asian, who are not Asian, [who] saw it as a hate crime.
THE RECAST: You’ve introduced legislation, a bill honoring Korean American military hero Col. Young Oak Kim. You’ve also spoken very forcefully on the House floor about the reauthoriziation of the Violence Against Women Act. That bill passed the House and is waiting for the Senate to take up the legislation. Why do these issues resonate with you?
REP. STRICKLAND: When we think about the Violence Against Women Act, there is a direct correlation between intimate partner violence and gun violence against women and how women are often so uncomfortable reporting violence against them. And sometimes the system doesn’t necessarily take it seriously. Reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act is so important. And also honoring Young Oak Kim. This has been something that has been tossed around for a long time.
But I figured with four of us now who are Korean Americans [Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.), and freshman classmates Young Kim and Michelle Park Steel (both R-Calif.)] who are serving in Congress, it was an opportunity to show bipartisan support, to honor someone of Korean heritage who had served our country and served it well.
THE RECAST: Let’s talk a little bit about how your first couple of months have been like. I mean, you were sworn in and three days later there was an insurrection.
REP. STRICKLAND: So I was not in the Capitol building. I was in my office down the street, but I was still on the Capitol campus. We had the swearing-in ceremony on Sunday. It was a joyous occasion, despite the fact that we had to campaign during a pandemic and we were experiencing all the tragedy that comes with that.
And then three days later, there’s a failed coup attempt at the U.S. Capitol to overturn a legitimate election. And then a week after that, the House filed articles of impeachment. A week after that, we had the swearing-in ceremony of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. So I often refer to my introduction to Congress as three Wednesdays in January.
THE RECAST: Three Wednesdays you’ll never forget. As far as the insurrection goes, has that made it more difficult to work with colleagues across the aisle? I’ve spoken to some members of Congress who say it’s hard to build up that trust.
REP. STRICKLAND: You can’t deny that a large part of the Republican caucus voted against a legitimate election and they didn’t support impeachment. So I say two elements here, there is the reticence you have when you know that someone supported the “big lie” and the fact that we are still in the middle of a pandemic.
I’ve met a few people on the Hill and in my freshman class, and it makes me sad to say that there are some people who have no business in Congress. They are not there to do the people’s work. They are not there to serve.
THE RECAST: Whom might you be referring to?
REP. STRICKLAND: Oh different folks that have been in the press on the Republican side of the House like Marjorie Taylor Green (R-Ga.) and some of these folks who I don’t feel like they’re here to legislate. They just want to get attention and grab headlines and just be controversial.
THE RECAST: It sounds like you are suggesting it’s more than her though.
REP. STRICKLAND: Yeah, yeah, so you [have] people [who] have made comments that are hateful and racist, people who talk about the “big lie.” There are people who support voter suppression, and that is the antithesis of what the general public wants to do. And again, it just violates the oath that we’ve taken and why we’re sent to Congress to do the work.
THE RECAST: Obviously, one of the biggest stories right now is the trial of Derek Chauvin who stands accused of murdering George Floyd. What are you seeing as far as this trial is concerned?
REP. STRICKLAND: I always remind people that George Floyd is not the one who’s on trial, it’s Derek Chauvin. He’s the one who had his knee on the neck of George Floyd for 9½ minutes. And very predictably what you see the defense doing is trying to undermine George Floyd’s character. And you recently had this moment where the police chief of Minneapolis even testified against his own former officer. I really do believe that watching this play out is going to be a litmus test on whether we can trust institutions and government. And how we’re going to be able to go forward when it comes to policing.
⧫⧫⧫