Hong Kong Anti-Extradition Protest: Lennon Walls Erected Near New York University
On August 4th, activists rallied in New York City holding yellow umbrellas to protest the recent anti-extradition bills proposed by the Hong Kong government. Gathering inside Washington Square Park, near major New York University Buildings, protesters chanted demands such as calls for the resignation of Chief Executive Carrie Lam and and erected Lennon Walls.
Protesters holding umbrellas drawn on by markers were present. Organizers provided arts and crafts supply and post-it notes for supporters to add in their own message for Hong Kong. Volunteers were also present to introduce the issue to passer-bys less aware of the issue.
Protesters holding yellow umbrellas with writings in support of Hong Kong were present and gathered around an umbrella sign silhouetted by post-it notes pasted to the ground.
Infographics presented outrages in Hong Kong such as attacks on journalists, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) influence and manipulation of Hong Kong’s democratic systems, and recent attacks by white-shirted gangsters on activists at Yuen Long.
A painting was present depicting the typical look of protesters in Hong Kong, which was composed of many disillusioned students. Yellow helmets for protection against rubber bullets from the head, goggles to protect against tear gas from the eye, and face masks to hide one’s identity against possible retribution.
“1984 is happening in Hong Kong,” one wall notes. The date of this rally — 2019/8/4 in numeric form — eerily alludes to the digital surveillance state China under the Chinese Communist Party’s authoritarian rule has become. “There are no violent protesters, only violent rulers,” raises another collection of signs.
The protest is a part of cries of Hong Kongers against its government’s recent extradition bill, which would enable the Hong Kong government to extradite criminals to China if passed. The bill has many implications on Hong Kong’s dwindling independence from Chinese influence, which has slowly been slowly sapped away despite the promise of an “one country, two system” doctrine during the Special Administrative Region’s transition from a territory of the United Kingdom in 1997.
An anti-extradition rally was similarly held in Taipei, Taiwan on the same day by Taiwanese organizers. Many Taiwanese fear that the bill would allow the CCP to arrest China critics from Taiwan, given CCP claim over Taiwan. The CCP claims Taiwan to be an “inalienable” part of China despite the existence of a democratically-elected government in Taiwan. Taiwanese human rights acivist Lee Ming-che was detained and “disappeared” in China in 2017, and has not appeared since.
The protest happening in New York is a sign that the discontent towards the Hong Kong government’s proposed bill, as well as its poor handling of the protest, is spreading throughout the world by overseas Hong Kongers. Anti-extradition protests was also held in Washington D.C., the U.S. capital.