By Susan Van Gelder
©2002 News and Letters.org
July 2002

Detroit’s Asian-American community came together June 21–23 in remembrance of Vincent Chin, murdered in 1982 by two drunk white laid-off autoworkers who thought he was Japanese. The weekend included a screening of “Who Killed Vincent Chin?," a civil rights teach-in, an evening of poetry and performance, and a visit to the Chin family gravesite. At the teach-in the Asian-American Center for Justice recognized the families of hate crime victims Joseph Ileto and Won-Joon Yoon, and the daughter of Wen-Ho Lee.

“Who Killed Vincent Chin?” was nominated for an Academy Award. Producer and director Renee Tajima and Christine Choy created a powerful story of life, death, racism and injustice. They blended interviews with Mrs. Lily Chin, Vincent’s mother, and Vincent’s killers, Ronald Ebens and his son, Michael Nitz, with scenes and archival news coverage of the case.

Vincent Chin and friends began arguing with Ebens and Nitz at a topless bar. One of the dancers testified that Ebens told Chin, “It’s because of you little m—f—s that we are out of work.” Ebens and Nitz chased Chin outside and drove after him to a nearby McDonalds where, despite the efforts of two police officers, they held him down and beat him with a baseball bat. Vincent died four days later.

The subsequent trial shocked the world when Judge Charles Kaufmann sided with the murderers and gave them three years’ probation and $3,000 in fines each. Mrs. Chin’s refusal to accept injustice became the catalyst for protests all over the country in May of 1983. As we wrote in NEWS & LETTERS, June 1983: “No one at the protest made a distinction between the racism surrounding this single case and the general atmosphere of anti-Asian bigotry, generated by… the UAW and the auto corporations.” A new case charging the two with violation of Chin’s civil rights was tried in Federal Court and found them guilty. However in 1987, it was overturned on appeal.

Mrs. Chin (who died last month at age 82) refused to give up on her idea of what American justice was supposed to be for her only child. Now, 20 years later, we are witnessing the ruling powers of our society create a similar hate climate against Arab people and Arab-Americans. Vincent Chin and his mother never received justice. But it is encouraging to see that he is not forgotten, especially by so many young people who came out in remembrance and rededication. For more information, call (248) 352-1020 or visit http://elab-unix1.bus.umich.edu/~maasu/vchin/.