"Everyone has a role in this movement. I - a dancer, a party animal - have found mine."
Girl working in product management who used to be a party animal but now spends nights evacuating lost kids on the streets after protests. On 15th September, she even helped 5-6 rounds of kids.
“It was scary being out on the street, but can you imagine being the protestors on the frontline? They were probably a thousand times more afraid than I was. Besides, many of my neighbours came down to the street to help too. I felt so connected - I felt a sense of community.”
I’m a part-time dancer and dance teacher. I’m also a party animal. My weekends used to be filled with Tequila, so I wasn't the type that paid attention to politics. In the past, whenever the time came to vote for our district representatives, I’d just ask my cousins for all the numbers of the candidates so that I wouldn’t have to pick them out myself. So now, I am absolutely surprised with myself in the past few months. I never would have expected myself to play an active role in politics and to spend so many weekends facing tear gas.
The turning point for me was on the 12 Jun when the protestors got tear gassed at the CITIC Tower. I got so angry. That weekend, instead of the usual Tequila night, I joined the march where 2 million of us came out to protest. Despite the big turnout, Carrie Lam still insisted on a second reading for the extradition bill...
On the night of 21 Jul, when I had just returned home from the main rally, I was watching the news to see what happened after I had left. I saw that the protestors in Sheung Wan were being targeted by the police. Suddenly, I thought to myself, "No. I will not stay at home anymore." That night, I decided to stop just watching the news at home, I got dressed and went out to help.
One of the first things I saw in the streets were people, including tourists - just normal people - getting indiscriminately tear-gassed. Many of them began shouting out, asking for safe routes out of Sheung Wan. As a resident in Sheung Wan, I knew the area well. I began telling them where to go for safety, where they could change out of black clothes, or a bus stop where they could wait for buses away from the police.
All that time when I was guiding people out of Sheung Wan, the police must have been only 100 metres away. It was scary being out on the street, but can you imagine being the protestors on the frontline? They were probably a thousand times more afraid than I was. Besides, many of my neighbours came down to the street to help too. I felt so connected - I felt a sense of community.
Since that night, I’ve always joined the protests. I used to hang out and party with my friends a lot, but now, whenever there’s a social gathering, I always tell them, "I’ll only join if there's no protest happening."
On 8 Sep, the riot police dispersed the march to the US Consulate hours earlier than they’d promised in their Letter of No Objection (to the march). The MTR station in Central was closed. Many roads were blocked. All the kids were trying to get off the Hong Kong Island - I saw plenty of KMB buses filled with people getting on the bus to go back to the Kowloon side from Central. There was one boy on the bus who looked so young. He told me his destination was Kwun Tong. He asked, "Is this bus going there?" I said, "No, it isn’t." I told him he’d better change buses when we get to the Kowloon MTR station.
One special thing you learn from dancing is that you are very aware and sensitive to other people’s reactions. Based off a person’s movements, their body language, you can tell what they’re thinking without them needing to say it. I could tell the boy was tight on money, so I offered some. He refused, he said he didn’t need it, avoiding my gaze.
I hid some money in my palm, slowly moved it over to where he was holding the bus' hand rail, then quickly slipped it into his hand so that no one else could see. He then looked me right in the eye and said, "Thank you."
On one hand, I am glad he took the money, but it also breaks my heart to know that there are thousands of kids like him.
On 15 Sep, people were marching along Causeway Bay and Central after protesting at the UK Consulate. Again, many kids were trying to get out of Central. The best transport to leave is by taxis. Sometimes, when we suggested it, the kids responded in such a way that you could tell they didn’t have the money to get out.
As a result, my friends and I have made an agreement. We set up a system to direct people out of Central as efficiently as possible - to help protestors leave safely if they ever want to return to our streets again. We prepare coins and notes for kids who can’t afford to travel.
Everyone has a role in this movement. And I have found mine.
What’s the future of Hong Kong like? I’m still optimistic about it. Over the last few months, the young people I’ve met are so polite, friendly, supportive and helpful to each other. In many other countries, protestors loot shops or set fire to innocent civilian cars - that’s never happened here. Our protestors sacrifice so much every time they come out. If you get arrested on the street, you might go to jail for 10 years. And yet they’re so passionate about improving Hong Kong.
Maybe you’re a frontliner, or an ‘evacuator’, or you donate money, or you’re a 'keyboard warrior' (those who supported the movement by providing different types of information online). In the end, whatever our role, Hongkongers are united by the same goals.
That is why I think, if we win, Hong Kong will have a great future. Add oil Hongkongers!
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Journalist: Ka Yan
Photos: Ka Yan, KC