In commemoration of the slain Chinese grandmother and to promote community solidarity, on June 15, 2024, the Visitation Valley Playground in San Francisco was officially renamed “Yik Oi Huang Peace and Friendship Park,” accompanied by a renaming celebration. Mayor Breed attended and delivered a speech, with over 200 residents participating in the event.
On January 8, 2019, Chinese grandmother Yik Oi Huang was severely injured in an attack while exercising at the Visitation Valley Playground, and passed away a year later at the age of 89. The 24-year-old African American suspect, Keonte Gathron, initially faced charges of “attempted first-degree murder,” which were upgraded to “first-degree murder” following Huang’s death. This incident was considered a hate crime against Asians.
Huang Yik Oi was a community advocate who had served as an ambassador for the Visitacion Valley Friendship Club for over 17 years. The club provided elderly services for the Chinese immigrant community and advocated for voting rights, Asian Pacific issues, and emergency preparedness.
To honor Huang’s kindness and dedication to the community, as well as to promote community unity, multi-ethnic harmony, Huang’s family and friends proposed renaming the Visitation Valley Playground, where she was attacked, to “Yik Oi Huang Peace and Friendship Park.”
On May 19, 2022, the San Francisco Entertainment and Parks Commission unanimously approved the proposal. “Yik Oi” signifies “great love,” aiming to make the community Huang loved a place of resilience and healing through this renaming.
At noon on June 15, San Francisco Mayor London Breed, District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton, numerous community leaders, and Huang’s granddaughter Sasanna Yee attended the ceremony.
Mayor Breed, invited by Huang’s family, delivered a speech at the ceremony. She mentioned that many residents had lived in Visitation Valley for decades, getting to know each other and often gathering at parks, libraries, or coffee shops, showing solidarity in the face of challenges. She expressed, “When the tragedy occurred in 2019, Huang’s family worked together to ensure the community wouldn’t be divided.” She praised Huang and her family’s spirits of “love, healing, hope, and unity,” the forces that brought people together.
She believed that the park renaming not only affirmed Huang’s personal spirit but also symbolized the community’s stance that they “will never be divided no matter how many obstacles they face.”
The day’s activities also offered a variety of healing and entertainment programs for community residents, including qigong, exercise, dance, acrobatics, dragon dance, and drumming.
Huang’s granddaughter Sasanna Yee, interviewed, emphasized the special significance of the event in rebuilding “connections.” She explained, “The attack on my grandmother could have caused community division, sparked more hatred, and made people estranged from each other.” Thus, hosting this event was “to bring people back together, to heal collectively.”
When asked if she felt better facing her grandmother’s ordeal, she sighed, admitting her emotions were fluctuating, but she understood that perhaps the perpetrator harbored much pain to unleash it on her grandmother. The process of forgiveness and acceptance might be “very difficult,” but she believed that she and her family “can do it.”
In closing, she smiled, saying, “Today is truly beautiful!” because the event not only mourned “a tragedy” but included food and entertainment activities like dancing. “It brings all of us together, which is our common starting point.” ◇