Justice rallies mark anniversary of deadly attack on the Asian elder that pushed the AAPI community into action

 

RATANAPAKDEE FAMILY

Vicha Ratanapakdee, right, and his daughter Monthanus Ratanapakdee

A year ago, a vicious unprovoked attack killed 84-year old Vicha Ratanapakdee and gave birth to a movement.

A security camera showed the Thai immigrant  on a morning walk on Jan. 28, 2021 in his San Francisco neighborhood when a man came out of nowhere and shoved the Thai immigrant to the sidewalk, his head bouncing off the sidewalk, knocking him unconscious. His attacker raised his arms up in victory as if he had just scored a game-winning touchdown.

The grandfather, who had a heart operation nine months earlier, never opened his eyes again. A few days later, the hospital was pronounced him dead from brain injury. 

Nineteen-year old Antoine Watson was later arrested and charged for the homicide. 

The video angered the AAPI community who was just starting to feel the impact of racism hurled at them. The pandemic had hit the U.S. for a year earlier and health measures affected the economy and fueled a pent-up frustration and anger among Americans forced to stay at home, quarantine and wear masks. 

The growing hate against AAPI was fueled by the Donald Trump administration's rhetoric using racially disparaging terms calling the coronavirus the "Wuhan Virus," the "China Virus" or the "Kung Flu."

That same week, attacks against elderly Asian Americans in other cities were videotaped and shown on television news reports: a Filipino American man's face was slashed while riding a New York subway, a frail elder was violently shoved to the ground in Oakland and an elderly woman was hurt when she was attacked in San Jose in a robbery attempt.

The hate was real and the attacks continued; so was the growing anger felt by the AAPI communities. That anger felt in the AAPI communities turned into calls for justice and for law enforcement and officials to take these unwarranted attacks seriously. The attack on Ratanapakdee and his death launched a movement.

Celebrities used their social media platforms to raise money for awards for information about the attackers, they appeared in news programs and dogged media to begin reporting these attacks as hate crimes.

Civil rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Amanda Nguyen posted an Instagram video showing the viciousness of the attacks on helpless elders she called on national media outlets to better cover the wave of anti-Asian violence targeting elderly residents from the San Francisco Bay Area to New York City.

Actors Daniel Dae Kim and Daniel Wu offered thousands of dollars as awards for information leading to an arrest of the attacker in an Oakland incident.

Soon AAPI celebrities, politicians and activists were on talk shows telling viewers about the horrible incidents and how they were personally affected. Some were even brave enough to admit that they too, suffered the slings of bias. The message they shared was: "the hate is real, notice us, take us seriously, help us fight racism."

A community group, Stop Asian Hate, began collecting reports of anti-Asian hate in March of 2021. Since then, nationwide there have been over 10,000 incidents of hate, ranging from verbal abuse to the fatal shooting spree that killed Asian spa workers in Georgia.

In several U.S. cities, Rallies for Justice will be held this weekend commemorating Ratanapakdee's death and the thousands who have suffered and died from the hate directed at them. Click here to find a rally near you.

Ratanapakdee's daughter Monthanus said she and her family continue to bear unspeakable grief from the killing of her father.

Her husband Eric Lawson told the Marina Times, “When Antoine Watson pushed my father-in-law hard into the sidewalk and killed him, he showed no humanity at all. His killing of our father was just like Derek Chauvin putting his knee on George Floyd’s neck to kill him.”

Meanwhile, the attacks against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders continue. San Francisco police department data shows anti-Asian hate incidents soared from nine in 2020 to 60 in 2021, a 567% increase. Police believe the number of hate incidents is probably higher because, often times, the victims do not contact the police.

EDITOR'S NOTE: For additional commentary, news and views from an AAPI perspective, follow me on Twitter @DioknoEd.