‘Irreplaceable’ Christina Yuna Lee active in fight against Asian hate, coworker says in emotional message

February 16, 2022

A former co-worker of Christina Yuna Lee, the Korean American woman who was fatally stabbed inside her New York City Chinatown apartment last weekend, has paid tribute to her impact at Splice.

In an emotional Twitter post on Monday, Kenneth Takanami recounted how Lee, 35, had formed a racially conscious activist group within their company, music platform Splice, in the aftermath of the deadly Atlanta shootings last year, according to the New York Post.

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“Christina started at Splice around the same time as the Asian hate crime shootings in Atlanta. It was an emotional and gutting introduction,” Takanami wrote, recalling the time he met Lee, who was a senior creative producer at Splice.“We met on a call with the other Asians in our work community to support one another. Afterwards, I reached out to her and we talked about how we could galvanize this moment to do some really important work at Splice.”

Takanami said Lee formed the Art Appropriation Council to combat racism and appropriation after “many hours of discussion about the place of Asians in the music industry.”

“After the Atlanta attacks, we and the other Asians at Splice formed a channel to support one another,” Takanami continued.

“The thought of folks we didn’t know being senselessly murdered struck us all deeply. We had long conversations about how we could continue to be there for our Splice community,” he said, adding that the last message Lee sent to the group was a greeting for the Lunar New Year.

Lee, who had just moved into the city in the past year, was a graduate of Rutgers University and had previously worked for Marriott and Toms, FOX5 New York reported, citing her now-deleted LinkedIn page.

Lee’s death, which took place barely a month after the death of Michelle Go, has added pressure on New York City Mayor Eric Adams to address community concerns over public safety and criminal justice.

“Christina was an irreplaceable presence. Heartbroken or devastated doesn’t begin to cover it,” Takanami wrote. “‘Now what?’ is the question that keeps ringing. What do we do as a community? What could we have done differently? There are no answers, just endless questions.”

“Life is fragile. Amidst all the headlines and takes and posts, don’t lose sight of the human loss at the center of all of this. Hold tight those you love.”

Featured Image via Splice / Twitter (left), PIX 11 (right)

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