You Can't Call Yourself 'High Justice' on the Ballot in Chinese

You Can't CallYourself 'High Justice' on the Ballot in Chinese

In San Francisco, where more than a fifth of residents are of Chinesedescent, politicians have long taken a second name in Chinese characters.

But the city's leniency for adopted names has frustrated some Chinese Americancandidates, who say that non-Chinese rivals have gone overboard by usingflattering, flowery phrases that at first glance have little to do with theiractual names. Some candidates have gained an advantage or engaged in culturalappropriation, the critics say.

No more. For the first time, San Francisco has rejected Chinese namessubmitted by 22 candidates, in most cases because they could not prove they hadused the names for at least two years. The city has asked translators tofurnish names that are transliterated, a process that more closely approximatesEnglish pronunciations.

That means Michael Isaku Begert, who is running to keep his localjudgeship, cannot use 米高義, which means in part"high" and "justice," a name that suggests he was destinedto sit on the bench.

The switch isn't universally popular. It has the potential of resultingin long monikers that are difficult to remember or even cringe-worthy, sincethe characters that sound like someone's name may translate into odd phrases inChinese.

At a recreation center in San Francisco's Richmond District, some voterssaid that a candidate's name has less impact on whom they choose than what onehas done.

"If you care, we'll know your name," Hong Le, 88, said inCantonese.