By Ted Fong
Maeley Tom’s new book “I’m Not Who You Think I Am” is aptly titled. Residents at ACC Care Center know Maeley as a skilled vocalist whose performances have brought them immense joy over the years. Yet behind her smooth, jazzy voice is her other voice that, for decades, transformed California politics. Those who know her as a politico will find her personal story and innermost thoughts fascinating.
Maeley Tom is a trailblazer who spent her career bringing Asian and Pacific Islander Americans (APIA) into the political process. Getting them elected. Getting them appointed. And she did so while serving at the highest levels of State government, working on presidential campaigns, and more.
Maeley was the Chief Administrative Officer of the California State Assembly and Chief of Staff to the President of the State Senate, David Roberti. In 1983, President Ronald Reagan appointed her to serve on the Women’s Business Ownership Commission. She was also a member of the Executive Committee of the Democratic National Committee during Bill Clinton’s presidency at the invitation of DNC Chairman Ron Brown. In every decade since the 70s, Maeley shattered a new glass ceiling, bringing others with her.
Her new book reveals how she brought together people with power, money, and influence. Often, she was doing the influencing.
Maeley explains how her upbringing, like her political career, was anything but traditional. Her parents were famous Chinese opera stars who were not able to raise her. They sent her to live with a French Basque woman in the Richmond District. At age 16, Maeley was self sufficient and financially independent.
After graduating from San Francisco State University with a degree in Social Welfare, Maeley recalls, “I looked forward to a profession where I would be able to help people in need, as I had been helped during my times of need.” If she only knew what lay ahead.
A master storyteller, Maeley describes her political journey from the very beginning, spanning from Sacramento to Washington, D.C. As a woman and ethnic minority, she plowed through many challenges that faced her. Fortunately, she was good at reading people, understanding their doubts and prejudices, and connecting with them in a positive way. Maeley learned very quickly how politics worked as her star rose.
As a high governmental appointee, Maeley was in a unique position to build an APIA political movement. Elected officials and grassroots organizations alike followed her drumbeat. In her book, page after page, name after name, Maeley recounts the details. She also expresses her gratitude to just about every collaborator she could remember.
One person she brings up repeatedly is Georgette Imura, who she says, “shared my passion and vision of change.” Maeley and Georgette stepped up to be the “face that took the risks” to promote the APIA political agenda. In a first, they formed the Asian Pacific Legislative Staff Caucus at the state Capitol. Current ACC Board member Joyce Iseri was in this group.
Throughout her book, Maeley describes situations where people misjudged her or were downright prejudiced. Her story about interviewing for a top job with State Assembly Rules Committee Chairman Lou Papan is a good example. It fit a certain pattern. Once people found out who she really was (hence the title of the book), whom she was connected with, and what her capabilities were, they changed their views about her. Many became allies.
Maeley details the Clinton fundraising scandal and how much she suffered at the hands of congressional investigators and the press looking for high-value targets with Asian ties. It was the low point in her career. But key people stood up for her. Close friends mended her spirits and got her past this crisis.
Maeley says her husband Ron Tom was “the source of stability in the family,” especially during this difficult time and others, like her mother’s passing and her bout with cancer. Ron and Maeley have been married for 50 years and have a daughter, Stephanie.
Maeley participated in this year’s Big Day of Giving at ACC. When asked what her most satisfying achievement was, she said it was mentoring others, so they have the same opportunities that she had. It is no accident that the word “mentor” appears 22 times in her book. As the only child of absentee parents, Maeley writes, “I totally relied on mentors and role models to help me navigate my own life.”
While Maeley is still involved in various public causes, she continues to use the musical gifts she inherited from her parents to enrich the lives of seniors at ACC. One time, after receiving a lengthy introduction at an ACC performance, she told the audience, “These titles mean very little to me, because I am here to sing for you. It’s just me, you, and the music.” In that moment, nothing else mattered to her.
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