In 2015, progressive Democrat David Moon (Montgomery County, District 20) became one of the first two Korean-Americans to be elected to the Maryland House of Delegates. Throughout his past eight years in office, Moon has been a passionate advocate for socioeconomic justice and civil liberties, for immigrants in particular.
As the son of Korean immigrants, growing up in Montgomery County during a time when it was less diverse, Moon felt alienated at times. “For a while,” he admits, “I was discouraged by the fact that I felt like we had fairly racially polarized politics in the country… I kind of felt like if I wasn’t a white or black person, being in elected office wasn’t really for me.”
In 2014, Moon took to the pen as a form of advocacy. Being the founder and editor of the blog Maryland Juice, he shed light on state policy and recent social justice issues. As he explains, “every generation, people are stepping in and going back to writing as a civic engagement.” The blog eventually gained widespread attention and was even mentioned by The Washington Post.
Moon entered the election scene as a campaign director for Jamie Raskin’s run for Maryland State Senator. He dedicated himself to learning as much as he could and doing the best job possible to move up in the ranks. Later on, he became a part of Nancy Navarro’s campaign for County Council. Navarro was a Venezuelan immigrant running against a State House delegate who was also the son of the former County Executive. The odds seemed stacked against her, but Navarro would go on to become the first Latina member of the County Council. The district was changing: Montgomery County was growing more diverse.
But there is still more work to be done. Even now, Asian communities remain distributed across the area, not concentrated in any one place, making it more important than ever for citizens to engage in politics and make their voice heard. “There are much larger groups than Asians in Montgomery County, so in many ways,” Moon says, “we’re an overlooked group, politically. We’re sort of a “sleeping tiger,” as they say.”
As a delegate, Moon served as vice chair of the Judiciary Committee and has worked on bills for a wide variety of issues, ranging from gun control to debt imprisonment to drug regulations and more. When asked about his goals going into his next term, Moon said “I really want to continue this theme of protecting immigrant populations from unfair harassment, by law enforcement in particular, and stopping the criminalization of poverty in Maryland.” Whether it be through campaign management, blogging, or debating policy in office, Moon continues to be a driving force in the realm of social justice.
You can read more about Delegate David Moon at davidmoon.us. Voting for the primary election date is July 19th.
하나님이 세상을 이처럼 사랑하사 독생자를 주셨으니 이는 저를 믿는 자마다 멸망치 않고 영생을 얻게 하려 하심이니라 (요 3:16).
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16 NIV)
