Remember the Asian grandmother who defended herself from an anti-Asian hate crime in San Francisco last week? Well, she has now decided to donate the funds that she received for her treatment back to the community to fight racism. Seventy five-year-old Xiao Zhen Zie was physically assaulted by a 39-year-old Steven Jenkins, a white man, in the San Francisco Bay Area last week after he approached a man standing next to Zie, who was an old Asian man, and assaulted him. The septuagenarian used her walking stick to defend herself, who was also beaten in the ugly brawl, leaving the assaulter injured.
Zie had suffered severe black eyes and bleeding as well after the attack. To pay for her medical treatment, her grandson John Chen had set up a GoFundMe page that by now has raised over $962,673. The funding page was initially set up with a goal of $50,000 as John described on the website that the traumatic event had left her with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). He also mentioned that even though his grandmother has health insurance that covers the basics, there are still many medical expenses that she cannot pay for on her own. Zie is a cancer survivor and she also has had diabetes for over ten years, according to John and the funds that would have been used to cover her medical expenses, her therapy treatment, and her bills that they will have to pay constantly.
However, after the overwhelming response, Zie asked his grandson to use the money to donate back to fight the racism that the Asian community is facing in the US. In its latest update, John has mentioned that his grandmother is feeling much better now and she has stated multiple times to donate all the funds generated in GoFundMe back to the Asian American community to fight racism. John said that Zie insists on making this decision, saying that the issue of racism is bigger than her. “This is my grandma, grandpa, and our family’s decision. We hope everyone can understand our decision," wrote John.
The attacks on Asian-Americans have seen a steep rise in the US ever since the pandemic started. Many link it to how the former US President dubbed the coronavirus as the ‘Chinese Virus’ blaming the country for creating the pandemic.