Republican nominee Trish DeBerry is drawing fire from the Asian community for referring to Peter Sakai as “Dr. No” in public forums in the contentious race for Bexar County judge.
Trish DeBerry, the Republican nominee for Bexar County judge and a former county commissioner, defended her reference to former Judge Peter Sakai as “Dr. No” amid criticism from the local Asian community.SAN ANTONIO —
Former district judge Peter Sakai said he was offended at being referred to as “Dr. No” by his political opponent.“DeBerry’s comments were none other than an ugly attempt to associate Sakai’s Japanese ancestry with a Hollywood movie Asian villain,” the Chinese American Alliance said in a release. DeBerry’s references initially drew gasps from the audience at McAllister Auditorium. But she was applauded for her comments on the jail proposal.
“You’re not respecting people who live in poverty on the West Side and have for 40 years,” DeBerry shot back. “You say no to economic development; you say no to pulling people out of poverty; and you say no to bridging the wage gap. So that’s why I refer to you as Dr. No.”In her statement, DeBerry again said “Dr. No” is a commonly used political reference that can be found in other instances online to “describe a leader who says no to everything.