Please consider supporting me at the Democratic Party caucus on Sunday, April 13. Caucuses open at 2pm and you must be in line by 3pm in all locations.

USC-Taper Hall of Humanities 201
Los Angeles, CA 90089
Park at Gate 3

If you live in Congresswoman Diane Watson's district, you can vote for me!

email me

Oiyan A. Poon is a Ph.D. Candidate in Education at UCLA. Her research addresses racial inequalities in U.S. education. Prior to arriving at UCLA, she worked in the areas of multicultural education, higher education policy advocacy, and academic advising since 1999 at UC Davis, George Mason University (VA), and the University of Georgia, where she was also a student organizer for affirmative action leading up to the Michigan Supreme Court cases in 2005 on affirmative action.

Most recently, Oiyan was the President of the University of California Student Association, elected unanimously by the undergraduate and graduate student governments at all ten UC campuses. During her Presidency, representing 214,000+ UC students, she was a vocal advocate for immigrant students' rights, racial equity, and affordability in California public higher education. She also helped organize and lead voter registration and education efforts. Oiyan serves as an Obama precinct captain in her neighborhood of Jefferson Park in Los Angeles. Additionally, she helped organize outreach efforts for Obama to the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities in California.

How I got involved with the Obama campaign:
In late October 2007, while I was still President of the UC Student Association, my mother who has Hepatitis B was diagnosed with an aggressive form of liver cancer. I flew back to Massachusetts to see how I could help her navigate the health care system, because of her limited English skills. As her advocate, I quickly learned that the system is woefully dysfunctional.

Unfortunately, her condition was initially mis-diagnosed in August and then the she was unable to get the proper medical attention she needed. I resigned my position as President, and worked with my family to take my mother overseas to Hong Kong in November. Upon arriving in Hong Kong, doctors quickly gave her the surgery she needed. I was amazed by the efficiency of the health care system there. The Hong Kong doctors were amazed that my mother could not receive the medical attention she needed in the U.S. My family is blessed that we were able to transcend national borders to seek health care that was blocked by a broken system in the U.S.

Thankfully, my mother is healthy today and recovering nicely. During her ordeal, she once said to me, "I came to America in 1974 for a better life. I never thought I would leave the U.S., where we have the most advanced medicine, and go back to Hong Kong just to get a basic life saving surgery. No one should need to leave home to get health care."

When I came back to California in December 2007, I decided I needed become engaged in the process of electing the next President. Barack Obama has inspired me to become engaged and not just merely aware of the process. With the health care system as broken as it is, we need someone who is gifted in bringing people from all walks of life to work together to collectively solve the problems we face.

When my father, who has voted Republican since he first naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 1982 said to me, "I will vote for Obama, because his leadership is what this country needs," I realized that Barack Obama represents something bigger than a political party or office. He represents a movement that inspires people of all ages, races, and classes to become engaged as leaders in our neighborhoods and communities, because as Senator Obama says, "We are the one we've been waiting for!"

And so, I walked into the Obama office and signed up to be a Precinct Captain! I got to know my predominantly Latino and African American neighbors, organized house parties, and got them information about voting. I received lists of Chinese speaking voters in other communities and used my limited Chinese speaking skills to encourage them to vote for Obama. I went to Las Vegas and Hawai'i to help with get out the vote efforts. I have called voters in Texas and Ohio, and continue to call voters in Pennsylvania.