January 07, 2007

Under pressure from the Chinese American community, Toys 'R' Us has reinstated a $25,000 prize awarded to a local New Year's baby. NY1's Cindi Avila filed the following report.

"She's the first baby born, so everything in the future should go smoothly for her," said Yan Zhu Liu through a translator.

But since Liu's daughter Yuki Lin was born at the stroke of midnight on New Year's Day in Lower Manhattan things haven't exactly been smooth sailing; a roller coaster is more like it. Yuki Lin was declared the first baby of the year and the winner of a Babies R' Us sweepstakes, a $25,000 savings bond intended to help pay for a college education.

But when the company got wind that the baby's mom may be an illegal immigrant, the prize went to a Georgia newborn instead.

"This is particularly troublesome given the history of Asian-Americans in the United States, where we have been seen as invisible or treated as perpetual foreigners or second class citizens," said Liz OuYang of the Organization of Chinese Americans. "And here, clearly, she was born in the United States, is a U.S. citizen and the award should be based on simply that."

It turns out where the baby is born isn't the only factor in determining who wins the prize. According to the official rules, the mother must be a legal U.S. resident. That news didn't sit well with people NY1 spoke with.

"I don't think that's right, because it's just about whether the kid was the first born in the United States," said one New Yorker.

Several Chinese organizations put a call out for Babies 'R' Us to return the award to the 6 and a half pound girl, and everyone NY1 spoke with seemed to agree.

In the end, it looks Babies R Us heard the community's call.

On Saturday, the company released a statement saying "We deeply regret that this sweepstakes became a point of controversy. As a result, we have decided to award all three babies in the grand prize pool a $25,000 savings bond."

That means Yuki Lin, the Georgia baby and one born in Bay Shore, New York all win.

"I think it's a great idea that they are giving the bond to the baby's mother even though she isn't a U.S. resident," said a New Yorker.

When NY1 visited the baby and her parents Monday, through a translator Yuki Lin's father said, "the baby will bring us much more luck this year."

It looks like that luck is already in effect.

- Cindi Avila

http://www.ny1.com/ny1/content/index.js ... aid=65697#