Brooklyn Park, Minn. (Nov. 14, 2016) — Susan Pha was sworn in Monday as the west district member of the Brooklyn Park City Council. She makes history as the first person of color to win an elected leadership position on the council.
Pha, a small business owner, an author and publisher, won the seat in the general election held on Nov. 8. She was sworn in at the council meeting Monday held at the Brooklyn Park City Hall Council Chambers.
Pha was sworn in early due to the fact the seat has been vacant since August, when former Council member John Jordan resigned because he moved out of the City. Pha has more than ten years of volunteering and service on nonprofit boards, task forces and planning committees.
Pha came to the United States with her family when she was three years old. She is a first generation war refugee. Her father died fighting alongside American soldiers in the Vietnam war. Orphaned at the young age of two, Susan and her family were able to seek refuge in America. Pha is married and the mother of two boys and two girls.
Pha said she is excited and ready to serve the people of Brooklyn Park, which is the sixth largest city in Minnesota and the fourth largest community in the Twin Cities metro region. People of color make up more than 50 percent of Brooklyn Park’s population.
