Chinatown, Japantown, and Little Saigon Deserve Better
The historic neighborhoods of Chinatown, Japantown, and
Little Saigon are not part of Washington’s 1st Congressional District. They belong to
District 7, represented by Pramila Jayapal since 2017. Many of the families and business
owners there are immigrants or children of immigrants who followed the legal immigration process
and built their lives through hard work and resilience.
Yet these communities have been forced to bear the brunt of Seattle’s ongoing
drug, crime, and homelessness crisis. Despite years of pleas, the mayor and city council
have offered little meaningful action. With the new administration in Seattle, many fear conditions
will only continue to worsen.
Representative Jayapal has been more focused on pushing national ideological agendas. Including
her support for the Housing Not Handcuffs Act, which would make it even harder for cities
to address chronic street disorder than on helping the people of Chinatown, Japantown, and
Little Saigon. These hardworking communities deserve better than policies that ignore reality and
make progress impossible.
To the people of these neighborhoods. Kincaid sees you and hears you. I will stand with you
and fight for you. You have endured the consequences of failed leadership for far too long. Year
after year, you’ve been handed nothing but empty promises.
A few words on the recent Microsoft job cuts. Back in the old days, as they say, if you spoke out against a major employer, people would warn you,“Be careful this is a company town.” Well, Washington today is essentially a company state. Taking on Microsoft head on would be political suicide. Let me be clear. I am not attacking Microsoft, and I am not trying to start a war with them. But I do think it’s worth re-examining some of their decisions.
For example, Microsoft has spent roughly $170 billion on stock buybacks over the past 10 years. That’s not unusual for large corporations, but instead of artificially inflating its own share price, some of that money could have been used for real investments investments in people, in innovation, in the communities that make Microsoft possible.
We should also re-examine the H-1B visa program. Companies claim America doesn’t have enough skilled workers to fill key roles. Others say we do, but that companies prefer to hire from overseas because many H-1B workers will accept lower pay. Data shows most H-1B workers are paid less than their U.S. counterparts. We could reduce the number of H-1B visas, or at least require that these workers be paid the exact same rates as domestic employees doing the same work.
The truth is, the layoffs we see today are small compared to what’s coming. Artificial intelligence will bring massive job losses in the years ahead. That’s not science fiction it’s reality. We can’t stop it, but we can prepare for it. That means re-examining everything now.
Imagine if even a fraction of that $170 billion in buybacks had been set aside to help employees transition into new careers fields like healthcare, clean energy, or advanced manufacturing. We should be investing in people, not just in share prices. That’s how we build a future that works for everyone, not just for Wall Street.
If I run. And if I win the election for Congress in 2026. I will be a politician that is not owned by the mega corporations. As God as my witness. I will always look out for the interests of the people.
We are in a crisis. For decades, recent college graduates typically enjoyed lower unemployment rates than the overall working age population. But that is no longer the case. Since late 2018, the trend has reversed and in recent years, the unemployment rate for recent graduates has consistently been higher than the national average.
In March 2025, recent graduates faced a 5.8% unemployment rate, compared to 4.0% nationally. This isn’t just a rough patch it’s a warning sign. The struggle is real, and the path ahead points not toward improvement, but toward worsening conditions.
Why is this happening? It’s the result of several converging forces. Artificial intelligence, automation, robotics and yes, the influx of foreign labor. These are facts. And we can choose to deal with them or ignore them.
Today, people you’d never expect to struggle are juggling gig jobs just to stay afloat. Driving for Uber by day, delivering food by night . All in an effort to survive.
We can’t sit back and watch this continue. We need policies that protect American jobs, invest in innovation without abandoning workers, and ensure that higher education leads to real opportunity not underemployment. We must prepare for a future where technology works for us, not against us, and where our own citizens are first in line for the jobs their tax dollars help create.
This is not about politics. It’s about fairness, opportunity, and survival for the American middle class. My tax reform plan and immigration policy are key components of a larger vision to build a stronger future for all Americans. It is the responsibility of every generation. To build a better future for the next generation. Unfortunately it seems that America has stopped doing that. We are on the wrong path. The time for a major course correction is now. Not addressing these issues. Lead to Trump and the Republicans controling the government. If the Democratic Party does not start to address these issues now. It will lead to Vice President JD Vance becoming President in 4 years.
Microsoft reported over $100 billion in profit in fiscal year 2024. This places it among the most profitable companies in America. And now it’s cutting jobs of the people that were key to its success. It happens. It’s business. But the company is obviously not struggling to survive. So does the company or CEO need any tax breaks. Do they really need to keep spending billions in stock buybacks? Something that used to be illegal.
The good news is that Seattle and its surrounding communities are not out of options. Government agencies like the Department of Veterans Affairs, which is boosting tech salaries and creating hub offices in tech centers such as Seattle, are looking for talent in software engineering, IT modernization, and program leadership. At the same time, private firms including Apple in South Lake Union, Zoom in Bellevue, OpenAI, Snowflake, and even Lowe’s tech hub in Kirkland are actively growing and recruiting ex-Microsoft engineers, product managers, program managers, and legal professionals. On the global front, companies like ByteDance (TikTok), Shopify, Aircall, and Gorilla Technology Group are expanding their U.S. operations, especially in Bellevue, opening roles in cloud and AI development, product leadership, sales, and compliance. These emerging opportunities show that while one giant company cuts jobs, many others are creating them providing a path forward for workers with the skills Washington helped cultivate.
This is a deeply disturbing case of antisemitism targeting a 15 year old Jewish girl at her high school in Seattle. This is racism. This is hate. This is evil.
What the other students did to her is unconscionable and so is the failure of the school system to protect her. I call upon the Mayor of Seattle, the Governor of Washington, the State Attorney General, and all city, state, and federal representatives to condemn this act without hesitation. I urge them to fully investigate the students and staff involved, and to offer their unwavering support to the victim and her family.
The people of Seattle and the entire state of Washington should be horrified that this happened. We should be embarrassed. We should be ashamed.
There is an infection of evil spreading in our country, and this case is one of the most chilling symptoms. I fear what the students who committed this act may be capable of as adults if this hatred is left unchecked.
CaseOutline: AntisemitismatNathanHaleHighSchool
Incident & Timeline
Target: M.K.L., a 15-year-old freshman at Seattle’s Nathan Hale High School, during the 2023–24 school year following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack .
Harassment included daily antisemitic slurs (“I hate Jews,” “Hitler’s plan should have worked”), swastikas on school property, online harassment via TikTok/Instagram, and physical intimidation (spitting, threats to “kill yourself”) .
Escalation and Safety Threat
On May 22, 2024, around 20 students chased M.K.L. through the school. A teacher locked her in a classroom. Those students “banged on and rattled the door” while shouting antisemitic threats and calling her out to assault her .
M.K.L. believed her life was in danger and refused to return to campus; ultimately, her family withdrew her from school for safety .
School’s Reaction and Alleged Inaction
The student’s family repeatedly reported incidents to the Principal (Dr. William Jackson) and Vice Principal (Makela Steward‑Monroe), but they allegedly failed to investigate, discipline, or publicly address the pattern of harassment .
School officials reportedly refused to preserve or release surveillance footage, even though they had used it internally raising concerns of deliberate deletion .
Legal Claims & Impact
The family filed a federal civil rights lawsuit (June 2025) under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, and related Washington state laws, accusing Seattle Public Schools of negligence, intentional infliction of emotional distress, failure to supervise/training, and discrimination .
M.K.L. suffers ongoing PTSD-like symptoms nightmares, flashbacks, anxiety and missed the last weeks of school. She later transferred to a new school with a healthier atmosphere .
Institutional & Community Response
Seattle Public Schools has expressed commitment to reviewing the allegations and reaffirmed that it does not tolerate discrimination .
Community groups, including the Jewish Community Relations Council and Project Shema, had intervened earlier in 2024 to provide anti-bias training and raise concerns yet the lawsuit argues systemic failures persisted .
