The Proud Boys’ donations show growing support from Americans of Asian and specifically Chinese descent. The group has been a hotly contested topic in politics over the last half-decade and many in the media decry it as a ‘hate’ organization. The Canadian government has dubbed it a terrorist organization.
According to the data obtained by USA Today from GiveSendGo, there have been more than 1,000 Proud Boys donations from people of the Chinese American community, including Hong Kong, Taiwan, and China, totaling $86,000.
The donations from donors with Chinese surnames have made up more than 80% of the total contribution of $106,107. Fundraising started on December 17th after Proud Boys members were stabbed near Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington D.C.
According to Joohn Choe, a co-founder of a research group on violence extremist, Intuitive Threat Assessment, the donors are “real people – real estate agents, scientists. Just Chinese American boomers.”
Why are the Proud Boys attractive to Asian and Chinese diasporas?
A Black Lives Matter founder, Patrisse Khan, openly admitted that she and her co-founder, Alicia Garza, are “trained Marxists” in a 2015 interview.
To some Chinese diasporas who have escaped the Chinese Communist Party, the idea of fighting against a movement founded by Marxist leaders and its infiltrators, Antifa, can be viewed positively.
What they’re saying:
Rebecca Kwan, who donated $500 to the group, replied to USA Today with the following:
- “You have to understand how we feel – we came from communist China and we managed to come here and we appreciate it here so much.”
- “The Proud Boys are for Trump and they are fighting Antifa, and can you see anything good that Antifa did except destroy department stores and small businesses?” she continued.
A Proud Boys leader, Henry “Enrique” Tarrio: “to the Asian community, I’d like to say Thank You.”
- “I am happy that Asians support the ProudBoys because of the continuous hate and the relentless assault they get from BLM supporters,” he texted USA Today.
“You are the true heroes and patriots!” wrote Janice Wang in a message accompanying her $100 donation to the Proud Boys.