Candidate David Ryu: Can He Back Up His Bank If Elected?
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David Ryu (Courtesy of David Ryu)
“Changing the conversation...doesn’t start until I listen to the actual voter, the actual resident,” said Ryu, who is running against 13 other candidates to succeed popular councilman Tom Labonge, who will be termed out later this year.
Ryu is currently the most funded candidate for District 4 with over $300,000. His journey to the campaign trail began when his mother decided to move the family from South Korea to the United States. Ryu was raised by his grandmother until he was six, which is when he and his siblings followed their parents to the U.S. Ryu’s parents were both college-educated in South Korea, but those skills were not transferrable in America. Ryu’s family struggled and applied for food stamps.
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“I remember feeling so angry at my mom,” Ryu recalled, “because I knew what it was and I was ashamed of it.”
Even though he “grew up poor,” Ryu eventually attended UCLA as an economics major. He later became the President of the UCLA Asian Alumni Association and a fellow for Network of Korean-American Leaders , or NetKal, at USC. Ryu also became a board member of many organizations including the Asian Business Association, and the Korean American Scholarship Foundation.
Ryu’s connection to his Korean background appealed to some Korean voters, such as Poly USA President/CEO Young Kee Chang. Chang said he contributed to Ryu’s campaign “because he’s Korean,” and implied that he would be able to represent Koreans if elected to the City Council.
Despite his involvement in the Asian and Asian American communities, Ryu seems to be downplaying the significance of running as an Asian American candidate even though the last (and so far only) Asian city councilman was Mike Woo in the 80’s. When asked if the Council needs an Asian American leader, Ryu said that “the best qualified candidates” need to be on Council.
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“I believe in diversity, and I believe that the City Council should be more representative,” Ryu said, “I wanna give those who are voiceless...one of those being Asian American, to have a voice. I’m not looking to represent just one group.”
One of those groups are those who are affected by mental health in some shape or form. Ryu’s main political experience is as senior deputy to former County Supervisor Yvonne Burke, where he worked on issues such as mental health. With cases such as Ezell Ford and efforts to end chronic homelessness on Skid Row, the mental health field is gaining attention across the country and is getting on the political agenda.
“I wanted to work in social services….mental health is one of the underlying issues when it comes to things like homelessness, incarceration, the foster care system, you name it.”
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Ryu sees himself as a "political nerd" who looks to NBC series "The West Wing" for inspiration as he runs for office. He wants to "bring back" the sense of honor that comes with office, and represent those who don't always have a voice in council. But for a self-described “political nerd,” Ryu does not have much experience in politics beyond the County, a concern that for some voters is a turn-off.
"I know David [Ryu] very, very well and he doesn’t have that City Hall experience," Scott Suh, a Koreatown resident, said. "He cannot take CD4 to the next level.”
Joseph Ahn, the Regional Manager of Government and Public Affairs at Northrop Grumman disagrees. Ahn, who knows Ryu from the NetKal program, thinks Ryu has the “potential to be an effective leader on council,” saying that he has qualities to make government more friendly and accessible.
Read more about David Ryu and his campaign at his website.
Reach reporter Heidi Carreon here and follow her on Twitter here.
