Andrew Yang
Andrew Yang (born January 13, 1975) is an American businessman, attorney, lobbyist, author, and politician. Yang was a candidate in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries and the 2021 New York City Democratic mayoral primary. He founded the political party and action committee Forward Party in 2021, for which he serves as co-chair alongside former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman.[3]
For other people named Andrew Yang, see Andrew Yang (disambiguation).
Andrew Yang
Position established
January 13, 1975
Schenectady, New York, U.S.
Democratic (1995–2021)
2
- Entrepreneur
- politician
- political commentator
- author
楊安澤
杨安泽
Yáng Ānzé
Yáng Ānzé
Iûⁿ An-te̍k
The son of Taiwanese immigrants, Yang was born and raised in New York state. He attended Brown University and Columbia Law School, and found success as a lawyer and entrepreneur before gaining mainstream attention as a candidate in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries. His signature policy, a monthly universal basic income (UBI) of $1,000, was intended to offset job displacement by automation. Marketed as a "Freedom Dividend", Yang has been credited with popularizing the idea of UBI through his candidacy and activism.[4]
Media outlets described Yang as a dark horse candidate in the 2020 election cycle, going from a relative unknown to a major competitor in the race.[5][6][7] Yang qualified for and participated in seven of the first eight Democratic debates. His supporters, colloquially known as the "Yang Gang", included several high-profile public figures and celebrities.[8][9][10] Yang suspended his campaign on February 11, 2020, shortly after the New Hampshire primary.[11] Afterward, he joined CNN as a political commentator, announced the creation of the political nonprofit organization Humanity Forward, and unsuccessfully ran for mayor of New York City in the 2021 Democratic primaries.[12][13][14][15]
On October 4, 2021, Andrew Yang announced his departure from the Democratic Party to become an independent politician,[16] faulting what he characterized as a system stuck in increasing polarization and saying that he is "more comfortable trying to fix the system than being a part of it".[17] Later in October 2021, Yang founded the Forward Party, a centrist political party with a stated goal of providing an alternative to the two major U.S. political parties.
Early life and education[edit]
Andrew Yang[18] was born on January 13, 1975, in Schenectady, New York.[19] His parents emigrated from Taiwan to the U.S. in the 1960s[20] and met in graduate school at the University of California, Berkeley.[21] Yang is of Hoklo Taiwanese descent.[22] His father graduated with a PhD in physics and worked in the research labs of IBM and General Electric, generating over 50 patents in his career.[23][21] His mother graduated with a master's degree in statistics[24] before becoming a systems administrator at a university,[25][26] and later an artist.[27] Yang has an older brother, Lawrence,[25][28] who is a psychology professor at New York University.[26][27]
Yang grew up in Somers in Westchester County, New York.[20][27] He attended Phillips Exeter Academy, a boarding school in New Hampshire.[29][30] Yang was part of the 1992 U.S. national debate team, which competed at the world championships in London.[27] After graduating from Exeter in 1992, he enrolled at Brown University,[31] where he majored in economics and political science, graduating in 1996.[32] He then attended Columbia Law School, earning a Juris Doctor in 1999.[19]
Business career[edit]
Early career[edit]
After graduating from law school, Yang began his career as a corporate attorney at Davis Polk & Wardwell in New York City. Yang later described the job as "a pie-eating contest, and if you won, your prize was more pie".[33] He left the law firm after five months, which he has called "the five worst months of my life".[33]
In February 2000, Yang joined his office mate, Jonathan Philips, in launching Stargiving, a website for celebrity-affiliated philanthropic fundraising.[27][34][35] The startup had some initial success, but folded in 2002 as the dot-com bubble burst. Yang became involved in other ventures, including a party-organizing business.[27] From 2002 to 2005, he served as the vice president of a healthcare startup.[19]
Manhattan Prep[edit]
After working in the healthcare industry for four years, Yang left MMF Systems to join his friend Zeke Vanderhoek at a small test preparation company, Manhattan Prep.[36] In 2006, Vanderhoek asked Yang to take over as CEO. While Yang was CEO, the company primarily provided GMAT test preparation. It expanded from five to 69 locations and was acquired by Kaplan, Inc. in December 2009. Yang resigned as the company's president in early 2012.[37][38][39] Yang later said it was during his time at Manhattan Prep that he became a millionaire.[23]
In September 2019 testimony before the New York City Commission on Gender Equity, former employee Kimberly Watkins testified that Yang had fired her because he felt that she would not work as hard after getting married. Yang has denied the allegations.[40] In an appearance on The View, Yang said, "I've had so many phenomenal women leaders that have elevated me and my organizations at every phase of my career, and if I was that kind of person I would never have had any success."[41]
In November, a former employee of Yang's at Manhattan GMAT filed a lawsuit against him for allegedly paying her less than her male co-workers and subsequently firing her for asking for a raise. Yang and another female employee at the company disputed the anonymous woman's claim that she was in an equivalent position to the male co-workers she cited.[42]
