“I would recommend a larger police presence in cities that are unsafe… many major cities have gone through radical changes in law enforcement… [and] many of the most unsafe areas in the country, in fact, need a heavier police presence.”
“I think for us to have a simple conversation about crime, it is not racism, but our leaders, our community, our society- we’re simply afraid of it”
As a Chinese immigrant who grew up in an Oakland ghetto, Ying Ma is familiar with the experience of living in a crime-ridden area. This November, Ma brought crime statistics and first-hand experience to a class full of Berkeley Political Science students.
By looking at crime rates during the period before the 2020 riots and during the 2020 riots, she shows the immense uptick in crime in major cities and addresses the mainstream political response to modern crime. In her presentation she answers questions such as “Who is most affected by this crime?”, “Is white supremacy really the cause of most crime?” and “How do we best help those in dangerous areas?” with common sense and grace.
Ying Ma is the founder and president of the American Ideals PAC, a political action committee, and Defend American Ideals, a 501(c)(4) nonprofit. She also is the author of Chinese Girl in the Ghetto and got her law degree from Standford Law School.
Business and Public Policy professor at UC Berkeley, Alan Ross, is a long-time friend of the Clare Boothe Luce Center. He hosted Ying Ma as a part of his mission to bring greater intellectual diversity to campus and expose students to conservative ideas.
