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Politics & Government

Assemblyman Paul Fong Defends His Support of the Ban on Shark Finning

Patch contributor Piyawan Rungsuk recently sat down with Assemblyman Paul Fong, to learn about his background and discuss his support of the controversial AB 376, which bans shark finning.


Assemblyman Paul Fong (D-Cupertino)
smiled broadly as he walked into the room. I could immediately tell that this enthusiastic politician isn’t easily fatigued, despite a busy schedule that has him bouncing back and forth between the state Capitol and a district that includes Cupertino, Mountain View, Sunnyvale and portions of San Jose and Santa Clara.

“I have to know a lot," Fong said. "It is a full, 24/7 type of job where I have to understand everything. My mind is always working. The better I manage this job, the better I serve my public—the 400,000 people in my district.”

First running for office in 2008 and roundly beating Republican Brent Oya with more than 76 percent of the vote, Fong will turn 60 next year, and at this stage in his life, he said he hopes to give back and help make society more equal.

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Raised in California, he cherishes the examples of prominent Americans, both local and national leaders, whose primary goal was to bring greater equality to our society.

“I have a dream," he said. "I have the same dream as Martin Luther King, where people see that black and white are the same. I try to make it a colorblind society.”

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Fong said he believes that this equality must permeate every aspect of life, but he realizes that achieving this requires creativity and persistence. “Thinking outside of the box” is an expression that is often on his lips.

Mentored by respected Bay Area colleagues like Paul Sakamoto and Mike Honda, he learned the importance of leadership from within the community. He has worked as a trustee at De Anza College and helped found Asian Americans for Community Involvement (ACCI). He reflected on Sakamoto and Honda.

“They are charismatic. They look outside of the box. They are very different than the stereotypes of Asian Americans.” 

A Chinese-born immigrant, Fong was only able to speak Cantonese when he first set foot in the United States. His parents set up a business growing flowers, and he fondly remembers playing in those fields as a child.

Growing up in the United States wasn’t always easy for a young Chinese boy, but Fong stood out from the crowd because of an innate passion for challenges.

“You know, I was just another boy in the 'hood, the kind of guy who hung around with a lot of different folks," he said. "I became a leader, because I was pretty big and pretty strong and outgoing.” 

Still, his parents raised him as a typical Chinese boy with very strict discipline, even though he admits that he broke all the rules. However, he believes that discipline made him what he is today.

Despite this culturally rooted upbringing, Paul Fong the politician doesn’t shy away from tough decisions, even those that could potentially pit him against his fellow Chinese-Americans.

Recently, Fong proposed Assembly Bill 376, a ban on shark finning, together with Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael). This placed him at the center of an environmental debate about the impact of supplying the key ingredient for shark fin soup, a traditional Chinese delicacy.

The ban seeks to help maintain the shark population. Sharks are the top marine predator and a critical part of the ocean eco-system. With such a strong demand for the dish, millions of sharks have their fins chopped off and are thrown back into the sea.

 “I have to think about it deeply, because I am Chinese," Fong said. "I have to think about my culture, my roots.”

Yet, he views the environmental impact as far more important than the cultural aspects in this case, and says that it is something that everyone needs to pay more attention to.

“[The] culture issue is very minor compared to the major environmental devastation of eliminating sharks.”

Despite these concerns, Fong discovered that the majority of Asian-Americans embraced his stance against shark finning, with 86 percent of respondents in one survey stating that the practice was cruel and unnecessary. 

“Chinese-Americans are environmentally conscious," he said. "They believe in harmony with nature. It’s in our culture to support the environment.”

Still, the bill isn’t without opposition, with state Sen. Leland Yee calling AB 376 "the latest assault on Asian cultural cuisine."

But Fong says, his heart loves a challenge, and he will never stop discovering and trying to bring balance to society.

“I’d like to make sure that our shark fin ban helps our shark population, to save the ocean ecosystem. All those things are just justices—social justices and environmental justices. Justices for all people."

 For more information on Assemblyman Paul Fong and Assemby Bill 376, visit:

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