FROM EASTSIDE TO 70 WEST
FROM EASTSIDE TO 70 WEST
BY Betty Duong
I am the daughter of Vietnamese refugees, raised in East San José by a community that knows how to survive and knows how to fight for each other. My parents fled war and arrived in Santa Clara County in the late 1970s. They worked on the assembly lines of Silicon Valley to rebuild their lives and provide for my younger sisters and me. I’m a proud graduate of the East Side Union High School District (ESUHSD), De Anza Community College, UC Berkeley, and King Hall School of Law at UC Davis. My journey was not always straight or smooth, but each twist and turn brought me exactly where I needed to be.
Growing up on the Eastside, I witnessed firsthand the challenges that working families face—rising costs, underfunded schools, and a system that too often leaves us behind. But I also saw the power of community: families organizing at neighborhood association meetings, neighbors who became like aunties and uncles, caring for all the kids, and elders who invested in developing small businesses when formal banks would not lend. That’s the Eastside hustle. That’s the grit and generosity that defines us.
“Growing up on the Eastside, I witnessed firsthand the challenges that working families face—rising costs, underfunded schools, and a system that too often leaves us behind. But I also saw the power of community: families organizing at neighborhood association meetings, neighbors who became like aunties and uncles, caring for all the kids, and elders who invested in developing small businesses”
Today, I’m honored to serve as the first Vietnamese-American elected to the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. That title isn’t just about breaking barriers; it’s about lifting the people and places that raised me. It belongs to all of us—not just my family, but every immigrant household that has made this place better than they found it, every student who has translated for their parents, and every family that has relied on county services. The Eastside isn’t just where I’m from, it’s who I am.
What makes the Eastside powerful is how we show up for each other. We’ve built a culture of resistance rooted in love. Vietnamese and Latino communities have raised families together, marched in the streets together, and dreamed of something better – together. Every win we’ve earned has come from grassroots organizing, from Cesar Chavez’ first boycott and the broad based coalition of La Raza Roundtable, Asian American Community Involvement (AACI), and National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) who advocated for the County to welcome refugees, the fight to build safe spaces like Mexican American Community Services Agency (MACSA)—to the generational battle to close the Reid-Hillview Airport, the campaign to save our local hospital system, and now the fight to restore and protect MACSA. A long line of fighters have represented District Two on the Board of Supervisors – Zoe Lofgren, Blanca Alvarado, and Cindy Chavez. It’s their legacy, our legacy, that I carry with me into my first elected office.
In today’s political climate, where working people are pitted against one another and immigrant communities are under attack, we choose belonging, solidarity, and power building. And, just like the generations before us, we will not back down. My vision is bold but rooted in what our community needs and deserves. As Supervisor, I am working to make District Two the healthiest place in Santa Clara County and the most welcoming place in the country. The purchase of the Regional Medical Center and the proximity of the Eastside Clinic lend us the opportunity to reimagine health and wellness in East San José. Let’s meet the moment with innovation. The Reid-Hillview Airport and the Fairgrounds have the potential to become genuine community assets—but only if we shift power and decision-making to the community, unlocking the Eastside’s full potential for innovation, culture, and economic opportunity. We also need housing that our communities can afford, and pathways to ownership so that families like mine can stay rooted in the neighborhoods they helped build. But none of this happens without us—all of us. I’m committed to community-driven solutions because the people closest to the challenges are also closest to the solutions.
Being from East San José isn’t just a point of pride—it's a responsibility. The challenges are real, but so is our power. The Eastside taught me how to lead - with grit, with heart, and with others. I may be the first Vietnamese-American to serve on the Board of Supervisors, but I stand on the shoulders of generations who organized before me. Together, the Latino, Vietnamese, Black, Filipino, and Indigenous working class have built something powerful. Now it’s time to keep building. Not just for ourselves, but for every child growing up on the Eastside today, believing, like I once did, that something better is possible, and knowing they won’t have to fight for it alone. Thank you for the opportunity of a lifetime—serving District Two on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. Let’s keep rising!