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The Hmong American Kinship sent a letter Wednesday to Elk Grove Unified School Board Trustee Bobbie Singh-Allen, responding to her allegations against the mayor and his supporters.
In that letter, they demanded Singh-Allen apologize to the Hmong community and undergo cultural sensitivity training or resign from her position.
“Without a comprehensive understanding of the Hmong culture, you have emboldened racial attacks against the Hmong community during a time when racial tensions have skyrocketed and Asian Americans, in particular, are already experiencing a spike in hate crimes related to the global pandemic,” the letter reads.
Hmong American Kinship Letter to Singh-Allen by FOX40 News on Scribd
Original story below:
ELK GROVE, Calif. (KTXL) — Yet another woman is accusing Elk Grove Mayor Steve Ly of being insensitive toward women who have been harassed and intimidated.
A Sacramento Bee article says a campaign staffer in 2016 was subjected to sexist comments and the mayor failed to do anything about it.
It started with a social media post by Mayor Ly claiming Black Lives Matter protesters burned down a Hmong-owned repair shop.
That was not the cause of the fire and when former Campaign Manager Linda Vue objected in a post of her own, she was contacted by a Hmong family clan member to remove her post.
She was allegedly threatened when she refused, with one post reading, “ … I know who you are….2morrow…..I’m going to dance with you..”
“He leveraged his political power and his privilege as a Hmong man to get me to remove my post about him,” Vue said.
Vue wrote an op-ed in the Elk Grove Tribune, which also published a reply by Ly. The web paper’s editor, Dr. Jacqueline Cheung, got her own threats on social media that implied her daughters were at risk.
She feared going on camera but told FOX40 on the phone, “I have a bodyguard in my house. I’m tired of the bullying, the intimidation, the harassment and the shady practices.”
At the last city council meeting, Ly denied directing any campaign of intimidation.
“It’s always been these whisper-type campaigns on social media that throw shade at me,” he said. “To make the suggestion I’m the mastermind that’s coordinating all of the intricate details of what’s happening is a little bit stretching it.”
“I saw that same pattern of behavior from Steve Ly,” said Elk Grove Unified School Board Trustee Bobbie Singh-Allen.
After the allegations of harassment, Singh-Allen claimed she got anonymous texts and calls from Hmong supporters of Ly who opposed her appointment to the board.
“I had several phone calls from blocked numbers cussing me out that I didn’t deserve it,” Singh-Allen told FOX40. “It hurt.”
She is now running for mayor.
Nancy Chaires Espinoza lost a city council race against Ly when accusations were posted about her. She said it’s no coincidence.
“All of his selected political enemies develop these online trolls and fake email accounts and fake social media all with the same style of attack,” Chaires Espinoza said.
FOX40 spoke with Mayor Ly on the phone on Tuesday. He said as a person of color, he is sensitive to the plight of female elected officials.
He declined an on camera interview but said he would release a statement on social media later Tuesday evening.
