‘Care Fair’ in Chinatown promotes
self-defense and rebounding neighborhood
Kenji Jones and Michelle Tran helped organized the AAPI Care Fair to uplift locals in Chinatown
BY DEAN MOSES
Organizers combined safety education
and fun family events to
create an exciting day of activities
in Chinatown during the fi rst AAPI Care
Fair on May 15.
Two young activists have spent the last
several months striving to ease the minds
of vulnerable members of the AAPI community
during a sharp, steady rise in anti-
Asian violence. By raising over $25,000 to
donate self-defense devices such as pepper
spray, Kenji Jones and Michelle Tran hoped
residents would both feel safer and be
safer amidst rising tensions thanks to the
giveaways.
Using the feedback and appreciation they
garnered from their social outreach, the
pair helped arrange the AAPI Care Fair
designed to promote safety and tolerance
through one afternoon of joy and defense
training.
“It is meant to be a really positive and
PHOTOS BY DEAN MOSES
uplifting event. It has been a pretty rough
time for everyone in New York City and
for the AAPI community having to worry
Self defense training at the AAPI Care Fair in Columbus Park on May 15.
about safety, it has been a rough time,” Tran
said. “This event is meant to be a happy day
and a day where people feel like they are
being supported by all different members of
the community to make people feel heard
and their concerns are being addressed, to
let them know they are cared for.”
On Saturday during AAPI heritage
month, the AAPI Care Fair was held from
10am to 12pm within Columbus Park
on Mulberry and Baxter Streets, giving
Chinatown a festival-like atmosphere for
the fi rst spring since before the COVID-19
pandemic.
A collection of tented stalls stood peppered
throughout the basketball court,
each one offering a free service for visitors.
The Asian American Legal Defense and
Education Fund spent the day registering
attendees to vote while also offering guidance
on immigration and housing rights.
The Asian Pacifi c American Medical
Student Association served the public by
conducting no cost health screenings to
ensure the physical needs of locals are being
met during the past year of quarantine.
In addition to bodily health, the mental
well-being of Asian New Yorkers was also
addressed. A booth aptly named puppy
therapy allowed people of all ages to hold
a dog on their lap and enjoy the kind of
relaxation that only comes when interacting
with man’s best friends.
Other mental health activities included
instructors teaching self-defense courses
and the dispersal of devices such as portable
alarms. But, above all, many were just
happy to sit back, relax, enjoy live music,
and socialize again.
“The event did take a lot of work to put
together, a lot of organizing, communication,
and ironing out details we didn’t even
know we would have to be concerned with,
but most of us have stepped up to the plate
and smoothed out all the kinks. We’ve done
everything we can to make sure our mission
of providing these essential services
and items to vulnerable folks happened,”
Jones said.
The Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association provided free health
screenings.
18 May 20, 2021 Schneps Media