Hundreds Join China Mac in Second New York Protest For Grandmother Set on Fire

August 17, 2020

Rapper China Mac was joined by 250 demonstrators for a peaceful “march against hate” in New York’s Chinatown on Saturday afternoon.

March against hate: The event was the second rally Mac organized in response to the attack on an 89-year old grandmother who was slapped and set on fire by two men last month. The incident has been under the precinct detective squad’s investigation and is not being considered a hate crime. The first rally, called the “Asian Unity Rally,” saw over a hundred people heeding Mac’s call and gathering at Seth Low Playground in Bensonhurst on August 1. Mac organized the two protest actions to denounce not only the violence of the crime but also the treatment of the case.

The protest started in Manhattan’s Washington Square Park, continued with a march that passed through Chinatown, and concluded with a demonstration at the station of NYPD’s 7th Police Precinct on Pitt Street reports AsAm News.
Along with the chants used in the first rally, a new one, “De Blasio eat a d**k,” formed after a video of Mayor Bill de Blasio turning his back on Patrick Mock, a bakery manager in NYC’s Chinatown who’s been feeding the homeless and elderly throughout the pandemic, pleaded for help on Tuesday.
The march was also joined by Chinatown activist and Chairman of Homecrest Community Services (HCS) Don Lee, who helped translate the grandmother’s ABC interview and announced the $10,000 reward for any information on the attackers.
He also said that he hopes other people will also speak up for him if such an incident happens to him when he’s 89.
Near the end, he thanked all the attendees but admitted he was disappointed by the overall turnout: “This whole f***ing park is supposed to be filled up… I thank everybody for coming out and risking, you know, a chance of you getting sick to fight for something.”

Meeting the victim: A day before the second protest, Mac met with the victim at Homecrest Community Services in Brooklyn earlier this week.

The grandma, who is now 90 years old, said she would have joined Mac’s rally if her legs were in a better condition.
She thanked everyone for thinking of her, their care, and for protecting each other and Chinese people.
Mac wrote that the grandma also gave her full support and blessings to the protests, saying that they are necessary to prevent similar things from happening again.
“We were already on Go Mode, but after meeting her and seeing her strength we are even more pumped and ready to keep spreading the message,” Mac added.
Political activist William Lex Ham, who helped Mac in organizing the two rallies, also met with the elderly victim and wrote on Facebook that she is encouraging everyone to “stand up and fight back.”

Feature Image via China Mac, William Lex Ham

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