Meng trying to hide her heritage?

From Crains:

Since announcing a bid for an open Queens congressional seat last month, Assemblywoman Grace Meng has largely kept her last name out of the three-way Democratic primary race. Campaign signs, placards and logos belonging to the Flushing politician have simply read: “Grace” and then “Democrat For Congress.”

It's an unusual omission, insiders say, especially in a contested race among candidates with low name recognition. “I've never seen a case where a person didn't use their last name,” said a campaign consultant who has been designing literature and lawn signs for 25 years. (Hillary Clinton went with simply “Hillary,” but she was a widely known former first lady.)

The appearance is that Ms. Meng, a Chinese-American lawyer, is trying to introduce herself in an ethnically neutral manner throughout the northeast Queens district, which is rife with conservative, white Democrats. Her campaign “might want to conceal the fact that she's Asian,” said one insider working to defeat the assemblywoman, who would be the first Asian-American woman elected to Congress.

Ok. Can I first say that Crain's clearly has no idea what the city looks like outside of Manhattan.

Perhaps Crain's ought to "crane their neck" a little higher so they can get a better view of the facts in Queens County. (attributed to the Flushing Phantom).

That suggests Ms. Meng must appeal to working-class whites in places like Auburndale, Bayside, North Flushing, Glendale and Maspeth.

Most of Auburndale, Bayside and North Flushing is not working-class and has a different take on things, particularly Asian-Americans in politics.

"There are conservative Democrats in many parts of the district who aren't exactly forward-thinking,” a Queens Democratic insider said, adding that many are uncomfortable with the recent proliferation of Asians locally.

It's not that the voters aren't forward-thinking; it's that the voters have seen the reality of what each of the Asian-Americans who have been elected to office so far have done, which is to say nothing (at best) and criminality at worst.