6-year-old Chinese boy finally speaks with father after 2-week separation

Yuanxin, a 6-year-old Chinese immigrant separated from his father over Thanksgiving, spoke with his parent by phone last weekend for the first time since their Nov. 26 arrest at a routine...

The Rebel Yellow - Issue #157

Nearly five years after 84-year-old Thai immigrant Vicha Ratanapakdee was killed during a morning walk in San Francisco, the man accused in his death is now on trial, reopening questions about long delays in the case and why prosecutors did not file hate crime charges. Immigration enforcement also drove several major stories this week, as Vietnamese communities in New Orleans reported fear after a DHS operation led to arrests of immigrant workers, and a 6-year-old Chinese boy separated from his father during a routine check-in was finally able to speak with him after weeks in detention. Elsewhere, the Trump administration proposed stricter social media screening for tourists entering the U.S., San Jose police launched a hate crime investigation after students formed a human swastika at a high school, and Miss Finland faced backlash over a photo widely condemned as a racist gesture toward Asians.

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Trial begins for man accused in Vicha Ratanapakdee’s death

Nearly five years after the fatal attack on an 84-year-old Thai immigrant helped galvanize the Stop Asian Hate movement, his accused killer finally faced a jury this week in San Francisco.

Catch up: Vicha Ratanapakdee was on his routine morning walk in San Francisco’s Anza Vista neighborhood on Jan. 28, 2021, when he was violently shoved to the ground. Surveillance footage captured the unprovoked assault, showing the elderly victim crashing on the pavement in front of a garage door. Ratanapakdee suffered a fractured skull and died two days later without regaining consciousness. Antoine Watson, then 19, was arrested on Jan. 30 that year, along with Maylasia Goo, then 20, who was charged as an accessory after allegedly fleeing the scene with him. Watson faces charges of murder, elder abuse and assault with a deadly weapon.

The attack video quickly went viral, prompting Los Angeles designer Jonathan D. Chang to create a portrait of Ratanapakdee that thousands adopted as social media profile pictures in solidarity. In October 2022, the city renamed Sonora Lane, part of Ratanapakdee’s walking route, as Vicha Ratanapakdee Way, while artists Thitiwat Phromratanapongse and Sarah Siskin created a mural in Chinatown using Chang’s portrait.

Why this matters: Opening statements began Monday following years of delays caused by legal motions, evidentiary disputes, court scheduling conflicts and the recall of then-District Atty. Chesa Boudin. By December 2023, more than 1,000 days had passed since Ratanapakdee’s death. At the time, his daughter Monthanus called the delay “exasperating” and warned that “witnesses’ memories are vanishing.” Watson, now 24, is not charged with a hate crime despite widespread belief the attack was racially motivated, a decision that fueled community anger and became a key factor in Boudin’s recall. His successor, Brooke Jenkins, has not added hate crime charges.

The absence of such charges unveils persistent difficulties in prosecuting anti-Asian violence as hate crimes, where establishing racial motive often remains legally elusive even when communities view the intent as obvious. The extended timeline also raises concerns about whether justice can remain effective when memories fade and attention shifts elsewhere. Watson’s attorney has argued he was experiencing mental health issues when he pushed Ratanapakdee.

What people are saying: Monthanus, who has become a prominent advocate against anti-Asian violence, spoke this week about the continued grief. She recounted the emotional toll during testimony that included viewing crime scene photographs, saying, “I see a lot of stuff, my father laid out on the pavement with blood all over his head.” She also expressed concern that jurors will not hear evidence about Watson’s prior conduct as a juvenile.

Ruby Tsang, a neighbor who attended court to support the family, described how the attack changed the community. “It made me fearful of leaving my house. I didn’t want to leave. I was scared,” she told KTVU.

The trial is expected to continue until mid-January with a break for the holidays.

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DHS targets Vietnamese community in New Orleans

A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) immigration enforcement operation in New Orleans has arrested Vietnamese immigrants alongside other undocumented residents, sending fear through communities that rebuilt their lives in the city after fleeing the Vietnam War five decades ago.