Ramey Ko '06 Sworn In as Austin Texas' First Asian-American Judge

At a swearing in ceremony on Feb. 5 at City Hall, Ramey Ko was one of four new municipal court judges to be selected to serve. A total of 24 municipal judges were appointed or reappointed by the city.

Ko will serve in a part-time, four-year term position as a substitute municipal judge.

Ko is a local attorney, political activist and graduate of Yale University and the University of Chicago Law School. He cofounded the Capital Area Asian-American Democrats, founded Asian-Americans for Obama and is active among other state and national political organizations.

Ko received national attention when he testified against the so-called Voter ID bill (SB 362) at the Texas State Capitol last year. During his testimony, State Rep. Betty Brown (R-Terrell) suggested that Asian-Americans adopt names that are "easier for Americans to deal with" when they vote since Chinese is a "rather difficult language" to learn. Ko, who is an American citizen, was explaining the confusion that may arise when various spellings are used in translating foreign names into English.