MICHAELLA ALOBA’S INTERVIEW WITH MAYOR DAVID KAPTAIN OF GURNEE, Il ON ASIAN AMERICAN HERITAGE MONTH CELEB

Impact of Asian Americans in Elgin, IL

living within its boundaries, Elgin is the eighth most populated city in the state of Illinois. With its diverse and multicultural background, about 7% of this number is made up of those that come from Asian descent. I was privileged enough to interview the Mayor of Elgin, David Kaptain. I asked him about his input on the Asian-American community. Although the Filipino community is not as strongly represented, the Laotians have been the primary ethnic group in Elgin since many of them came here in the 1960’s. Q: How have Asian-Americans impacted the development and continuous growth of Elgin? A: They have been incorporated in our community. Many of them came here and gave up virtually everything that they had. They started over and worked in the industry here. We have a Veteran’s group called the Silent Army, which is made up of volunteers that fought during the Vietnam War. They came here apart of the American Legion, so we are currently working with them for a memorial. Now, many of them are second and third generations so we’re starting to see the impact of the Asian-American community through the school system. Many of them came here with the idea of providing education for their children. Q: Are there any historical Asian-Americans that have affected this community? A: We have some people actually. One of them was a general in the Lao army. He lived in Elgin and currently passed away. And again, we have a number of military people that came here after the war and stayed in Elgin. Q: What can the city of Elgin do now, or perhaps next year, to celebrate Asian- American heritage month? A: It was costing us a half a million dollars to put on around 100 different events for people of different ethnic groups to celebrate their own heritage. We couldn’t afford to do all of it anymore so we consolidated. I wanted people to work together so we came up with the International Festival. I wanted to celebrate the ethnicity and diversity of the community. What it allows people to do is to use their native costumes, bring their ethnic foods, play games, do crafts, participate in a parade, and enjoy entertainment. What I said was that we all needed to learn how to play in the sand box together, and that’s what happened. It turned into a really great event. Q: What’s the prospect of opening the doors for Asian Americans in the city/municipal council of Elgin in the very near future? A: We just had the very first Asian American to run for city council, who is also a good friend of mine. He was the head of the Lao- American Organization of Elgin. Although he didn’t win, he knew that someone needed to take the first step. There are so many opportunities for Filipinos of this community to take part in. With the endless possibilities, Filipino culture can be showcased. I hope to see more Filipino-American participation within this dynamic and diverse community in the near future, because I know they are capable of doing great things.