Quotes by John Liu

“There are lots of issues that Asian Americans share, ... one being the immigrant experience, being relatively recent immigrant arrivals. And Asians also suffer from a perpetual- foreigner syndrome, meaning that you could be a fourth- or fifth-generation Asian American but still somehow its difficult to believe that youre an American. I get that: First they compliment me on my ability to speak English, and often I get asked, Well, where are you from? and for some reason people refuse to take Flushing for an answer.”

“[But while missteps still occur, there seems to be progress.] Elected officials and other entities are becoming more savvy about Asian Americans, ... and the fact that theres no one descriptor that can be applied to everybody whos Asian American, and even within the different ethnic groups there are some nuances.”

“Transportation is not just about trains and cars and things on wheels. Its about how people get to and from work and its the underpinning of economic development, ... I think that point needs to be understood more deeply by all of the candidates.”

“The mayor has taken us through a series of fiascos with the takeover of private bus lines. The city is down to half as many running buses as we had a few years back and riders are forced to wait twice as long for service.”

“I dont think you could call it a public address system, ... Its a speaker coming from the token booth.”

“Every ecosystem on the planet is under threat of catastrophic collapse, and if we dont begin to acknowledge and solve them, then we will go down.”

“Its a challenging period. Its clear that our transit system is a ripe target [for terrorism], if we have learned anything from London and Madrid. The good thing is that these suspicious packages are spotted and found. The increased NYPD presence definitely helps. However, the MTA leaves a lot to be desired. They are slow to recognize the need to harden the system against potential attacks.”

“Theres no accountability for the MTA right now, and theres a huge burden on the workers. Everyone shares the blame, but the MTA in my opinion bears most of the onus if theres a shutdown.”

“We are really hoping that he will pull through from this.”

“Our Youth Action Team promotes a stronger connection between young people and the community. We seek potential leaders who have the energy and motivation to contribute.”