Chinese Grandma Who Fought Off Attacker to Donate Over $900K from GoFundMe to AAPI Community

March 23, 2021

Xiao Zhen Xie, the 75-year-old elderly woman who fought back an attacker in San Francisco, has decided to donate all her GoFundMe money back to the Asian American community.

What happened: Last Wednesday, Xie was leaning by a light pole around Market Street when a man punched her in the face unprovoked.

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In the footage captured by Dennis O’Donnell, a Sports Director for KPIX, Xie fought back against the attacker with a wooden stick. He was handcuffed to a stretcher when officers took him away.
The assailant was discovered to be Steven Jenkins, 39, and was connected to a separate elderly attack that day, targeting Ngoc Pham, an 83-year-old man who was shopping for groceries in that area.
Ngoc suffered cuts, bruises, a fractured nose, and was recommended to get an MRI scan for neck bone fractures. The Community Youth Center of San Francisco (CYCSF) also set up a GoFundMe to cover his medical bills, having raised over $279,000 of its $25,000 goal as of this writing.

“Combat racism”: In the latest update on Xie’s GoFundMe, Xie, her husband and the family came to the decision to donate all the funds “back to the Asian American community to combat racism.”

Xie insisted repeatedly on the decision, as her grandson and GoFundMe’s organizer, John Chen, stated she believes “the issue is bigger than her.”
Xie’s injuries included heavily bruised black eyes, one that continued to bleed profusely, a swollen wrist, and according to her daughter, Dong-Mei Li, unstable mental health from the trauma of the incident.
Last Thursday, Chen stated, “she hopes the younger generation of Asian Americans can all stand up for one another, and hope they can stick up for the elderly.”
Her eyes are deswelling to the point that she can open them again, and she is starting to “feel optimistic again.”
Chen added, “She said we must not [submit] to racism and we must fight to the death if necessary.”
It has raised over $897,000 of its $50,000 goal as of this writing.

Giving back: Throughout the year, there have been a few instances of elders who were the target of attacks and refused or returned donations.

In February 2020, an elderly Chinese man who was robbed and assaulted on the street while collecting recyclables in the Bayview neighborhood refused any help.
On July 17, 2020, an 89-year-old woman who was set on fire in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, and ignited the #TheyCan’tBurnUsAll movement, thanked everyone who contributed to the GoFundMe but returned all the funds.

Feature Image via John Chen (left), @DennisKPIX (right)

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