Richmond rally in support of Asian community at recent site of hate

RICHMOND (NEWS 1130) — The site of a recent anti-Asian racist rant was transformed into a site of support and resistance today.

A small rally took place Friday, outside of a Richmond Burger King, where on May 1, a man began hurling racial insults at a family waiting inside their vehicle to pick up their food.

Organized by the Stand With Asians Coalition, co-founder Doris Mah says they wanted to be there to support the family who was the target of the tirade.

DAY OF ACTION RALLY AT STEVESTON BURGER KING May 14 11AM Stand With Asians Coalition #SWACoalition will rally to denounce a recent racially motivated hate crime & to show support to the victims 11388 Steveston Hwy, Richmond #stopasianhate #stopracism https://t.co/qRS5KWILri

— Doris Wai Ki Mah 馬朱慧琪 (she/her) l MPM I MALTS I BA (@doriswk_mah) May 14, 2021

“My mother and I could not imagine this could have happened to me, if I were driving my kids to this drive thru and had this racist person come and swore at us,” she says.

Mah says they also want to send a message to the man who launched the tirade.

“We’re not gonna tolerate you taking away the space from us. We’re gonna reclaim this. This is a safe space for all of us, and we’re not going to tolerate you being racist.”

Related Articles:

• Victims of anti-Asian hate speak to mayor, police at Vancouver roundtable

• Community leaders call for action on anti-Asian hate crimes in Vancouver

• Richmond RCMP still looking for suspect in drive-thru anti-Asian tirade

Formed in April, SWAC is a “community of people in Canada who are concerned by the surge of anti-Asian racism in our cities.” Citing the over 700 per cent increase in police-reported  attacks in Vancouver since the pandemic begun, SWAC condemns all forms of hate.

Richmond RCMP have released photographs of the suspect, but there has been no confirmation whether the offender has been located.

– With files from Omni