The Rowdy Rally That Wasn’t

Asian Americans in San Francisco Must Fight Attackers - and the Media

On Sunday, August 6, 2022 a rally was held in San Francisco’s Washington Square Park. The intention of it was to highlight the brutal attacks of Asians in San Francisco. It came on the heals of several recent events. A 70-year old woman was robbed and beaten by an 11-year-old boy, a 13-year-old girl, a 14-year-old girl, and an 18-year-old male at her senior living center. The video was so gruesome I couldn't watch for more than a few seconds, as she was repeatedly kicked in the head and on other parts of her frail body as she tried to escape. Then Gregory Chew, a former San Francisco commission member who is also in his 70s was repeatedly punched in the face by an assailant, leaving him bloody and unconscious on the sidewalk. Small businesses in Chinatown face near constant robberies. Many of the criminals are armed. They shatter shop windows and terrorize the merchants as they take what they want, leaving the traumatized owners and workers to clean up the mess.

Are these attacks racially motivated? I won’t speculate because I really don’t know, nor is it the reason for this article. I just I hope with all my heart that this will stop and that we can bridge the ever widening divide that is making life miserable for all our citizens and business owners. We simply can’t have people hating and hurting each other because of their ethnic background here in this precious city.

We also can’t have the San Francisco Chronicle making matters worse and causing resentment with headlines such as the one that appeared in the digital paper, accompanying the story about the event by reporter Sam Jackson Whiting.

“Fight Asian Hate” marchers take to S.F. streets in rowdy call for justice.

When I read that headline I was shocked. Along with hundreds of others, I was there. So was Senator Scott Wiener, District 6 Supervisor Matt Dorsey, and Leanna Louie, a community advocate who is running for District 4 supervisor. I can say with absolute certainty that nothing about the event could be described as anything but civil and organized.

There were lion dancers (incredible, as always) speeches from activists like Charles Jung, of Asian Justice Movement, and Justin Zhu with Stand with Asian Americans. Lt. Mark Moreno with the San Francisco Police Department also spoke, vowing increased police presence and foot patrols.

Was the rally passionate? Were people upset? Of course. It’s a serious situation. But rowdy it was not, so it’s baffling that this word would be chosen to describe the event. It alludes to an uncontrolled and even violent atmosphere when it was nothing of the sort. The content of the article was also strange, including:

“…raucous drum corps and protesters’ chants of “Fight Asian hate” distracted outdoor brunches and disrupted the flow of double-decker tour buses."

This verbiage evokes images of ruffians wrecking havoc as they marched down the street. However, the group didn’t destroy property, block streets, or threaten anyone in their path. This is a population that is fighting for their lives and livelihood, with seniors often singled out for the worst of the brutality yet they retained their dignity and acted within the boundaries of the law. How dare the event be portrayed so pejoratively?

Yes, words do matter, especially when they are published in major media outlets. Descriptions need to be accurate and non-biased. The headline, especially, was not.

I reached out Emilio Garcia Ruiz, the San Francisco Chronicle’s Editor in Chief for an explanation. Thankfully, his response was swift. This is what he wrote:

An early version of the protest story used an incorrect word to describe the tone of the event. The error was caught and corrected in the normal editing process. It appeared on the site for about two hours. Subsequent headlines and the headline used in the newspaper were accurate.  We apologize for the error.

I appreciate Ruiz’ statement and action, but I won’t speak on behalf of the Asian American community. Me, I just write about what’s happening in San Francisco as accurately as possible. Sometimes it's hard to control my anger, particularly as I watch my friends and neighbors face an onslaught of abuse.

Let’s all do better, as they say

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