In recent years, Chinese-American groups in the United States have gradually changed their “silent minority” image, starting to speak up more for their rights and getting involved in American politics, showcasing the diversity and inclusivity of the United States as a “melting pot” of cultures. However, the Chinese Communist regime is also using Chinese participation in politics and the diversity and inclusivity of American culture to provoke and exacerbate social divisions in the United States.
On July 28, 2024, thousands of protesters waving American flags gathered in Foley Square in downtown Manhattan, coming from different Chinese communities in New York City. As they crossed the iconic Brooklyn Bridge into downtown Brooklyn, they held signs saying “Justice for Asian Americans” and chanted slogans like “Safe Homes, Safe Schools, No Shelters!”
This was another protest in a series against the proposed establishment of a homeless shelter in southern Brooklyn and in support of Chinese-American councilwoman Susan Zhuang, who was arrested for allegedly biting a police officer during a protest on July 17.
Many speakers at the march and protest wore blue shirts with the emblem of the “Chinese-American Alliance for Civil Rights” (CAACR), founded in 2015 by Chen Shanzhuang, also known as the “King of Brooklyn.” Chen Shanzhuang, 70, also appeared at the protest that day.
CAACR claims that the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community has been subjected to a series of injustices. They accuse the U.S. Department of Justice of discrimination against Chinese-American police officers, condemn the increase in hate crimes against Asians and the deterioration of public safety. They oppose the construction of homeless shelters in areas where Asians are the majority, seeing it as an “unfair burden,” and they oppose ending the plan for New York City’s elite high schools to admit students through standardized testing.
In addition to serving as the general convener of CAACR, Chen Shanzhuang holds many leadership positions in the American Chinese community, including Chairman of the United Asian American Associations, President of the American Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, President of the American Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce, and President of the American Chinese Restaurant Alliance (New York).
In March last year, Chen Shanzhuang was invited as the only “American” representative among overseas Chinese to participate in one of the Chinese Communist regime’s annual “Two Sessions” – the “CPPCC” is the highest organization of the Chinese Communist Party’s “United Front” system, aimed at enhancing the Party’s influence in China and globally.
The Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that “united front work” is the “magic weapon” to use various official institutions, as well as semi-official and non-governmental social organizations abroad, to promote Chinese (CCP) interests in overseas countries.
A recent article in Foreign Policy magazine mentioned that Chinese Communist united front activities have a wide range, including intelligence gathering, cross-border repression of critics of the CCP, and covert influence activities to reshape the political ecosystems of other countries, such as attracting political and business elites of other countries, as well as manipulating overseas Chinese communities.
In a series of reports about Chinese Communist agents and spies in New York, California, the UK, and elsewhere, Chinese Communist united front work not only poses a threat to U.S. national security but also threatens the civil liberties of multicultural democratic countries.
Individuals involved in united front activities, such as Chen Shanzhuang, actively reshape the speech and actions of American citizens to achieve the goals of the Chinese Communist regime, which disrupts the healthy functioning of American civil society, distorts the voices of Chinese and Asian American communities, and undermines people’s good motivations to participate in American politics.
The issues concerning the New York Chinese community align with conservative Republican ideals, such as criticizing the radical policies of the Democratic Party – such as defunding the police and promoting “affirmative action” in educational institutions (i.e., racial quotas in university admissions), policies that they believe have led to increased crime, weakened law and order, and discrimination against white and Asian communities.
However, protests organized by organizations such as CAACR led by Chen Shanzhuang adopt themes consistent with identity politics often used by the left, especially emphasizing discrimination against Asians and hate crimes.
Foreign Policy magazine’s article states that the rhetoric in Chinese protests in recent years reflects a complex and relatively new strategy of the Chinese Communist United Front Department. It aims to incite a sense of threat to Chinese identity against the background of disagreements over political and social issues in host countries, intensify their affinity with and view of the Chinese Communist Party as a protector or benefactor, while exacerbating and deepening political and social divisions in the United States.
The Chinese Communist united front work has long targeted overseas Chinese, either forcing them to act as agents and spies, or simply to make overseas Chinese feel proud of China to win their sympathy and support for the Chinese Communist Party.
Now, united front workers are seeking to mobilize Chinese communities abroad by exploiting controversial “wedge” issues in host countries— everyday issues that Chinese in those countries are concerned about.
The CCP actively exploits the relationship between overseas Chinese communities and their host countries, with the ultimate goal of undermining Western societies and increasing the loyalty of overseas Chinese to the Chinese Communist Party.
A previous study mentioned in the article found that the Chinese government’s propaganda targeting Chinese-Americans on WeChat specifically amplifies themes of racism and violence, emphasizing ideas about America’s rejection of and longtime discrimination against Chinese-Americans, activating among overseas Chinese a sense of racial identity and making them more likely to seek support from those similar to themselves.
The Chinese Communist strategy of united front operations extends beyond shaping the information environment and includes on-the-ground community mobilization. Chen Shanzhuang is an influential figure mobilizing communities for Chinese Communist united front activities.
In addition to CAACR, Chen Shanzhuang established another community association, the “Brooklyn Asian Community Empowerment” (BRACE), later renamed the “Asian-American Community Empowerment” (AACE). Over the past few years, these associations have been actively involved in community activities related to AAPI issues. The COVID-19 pandemic has provided them with a more fertile ground to combat “anti-Asian hate crimes” and concerns about public safety.
In February 2016, when New York Chinese-American police officer Peter Liang was convicted of accidentally killing a black man during duty in November 2014, CAACR mobilized thousands of Chinese-Americans to protest in support of Liang’s civil rights.
Chen Shanzhuang and other CAACR leaders believe that the U.S. justice system discriminated against Liang by convicting him while not convicting his white patrol partner, making Liang a scapegoat for police-civilian conflicts. During multiple demonstrations, CAACR members urged Asian Americans to vote in the elections that year so that their voices would be heard. Chen Shanzhuang also said CAACR raised $300,000 in legal fees for Liang’s family’s appeal.
In 2018, when then-New York City Mayor proposed canceling the specialized high school entrance exam, a standardized test that many Asian immigrant families saw as a gateway for their children to enter elite public high schools, CAACR held a press conference condemning the cancellation as racism and organized two protests.
The proposed homeless shelters in New York’s Chinatown and southern Brooklyn have been a focal point of Chinese-American protests in recent years, especially following two tragic incidents in which homeless men killed Asian-American women. In early 2022, the NYC Department of Homeless Services announced plans to establish three homeless shelters in Chinatown, but amid community pressure, two were canceled, with only one being set up at the site of a closed hotel at 91 East Broadway.
The proposed “safe haven” project in New York aims to provide normal housing facilities for the homeless, but it has faced strong opposition from local community groups, including some Chinese organizations with ties to the Chinese United Front Department. Protesters targeted the Asian American Federation, a long-standing nonprofit organization in Chinatown, which had begun negotiations with the facility operator to accommodate Asian homeless individuals and provide Chinese-language services but didn’t directly participate in the project construction.
For example, the Fujianese Association (FHA) and the American Chinese Association (ACA) set up picket lines and harassed AAFE staff at the AAFE office. FHA often acted as “enforcers” for the Chinese Consulate, while ACA’s former chairman Lu Jianwang and secretary Chen Jinping were arrested by the FBI in 2023, accused of acting as agents of the Chinese Communist Party and establishing and operating illegal and secret Chinese police stations in New York.
The UFAA implied that AAFE had undisclosed interests in the real estate and construction contracts of the “safe haven” project. This pressure led to AAFE withdrawing from negotiations. The UFAA even led a group to sue the New York City government. After the case was dismissed, the UFAA filed an appeal.
These united front participants do not conceal their identity when mobilizing their community, as well as their role as extensions of Chinese Communist influence tools. In an interview in 2024, Chen Shanzhuang said, “Expanding the power of the Chinese community is CAACR’s mission. Just with only 6 million Jews, they have the ability to influence the U.S. government, which should be a reference for Chinese people.”
Participants in the Chinese Communist United Front are increasingly adept at leveraging social and political trends in their host countries, mobilizing on issues directly related to Chinese Communist interests. For instance, Linda Sun, a former senior aide to two New York governors, utilized her political position to serve Chinese Communist interests. She and her husband were arrested last September.
Sun was accused of serving as a Chinese Communist agent. She was charged with laundering money and conspiracy.
These united front participants are also skilled at using their intermediary role to gain personal and financial benefits. U.S. prosecutors stated in their latest indictment on March 9 this year that Sun brought in at least $15.76 million in illegal income for them by serving Chinese Communist interests.
Another Chinese-American figure in New York politics, Winnie Greco, a longtime close aide to New York City Mayor Eric Adams, was found to have deep ties to the Chinese Communist United Front Department. Last March, the FBI searched her residence and office.
Greco has had at least a 25-year friendship with Chen Shanzhuang. Chen Shanzhuang has frequently attended events with Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul. He has also led and funded New York state legislators and corporate executives on trips to China multiple times.
Chen Shanzhuang is considered a power broker in New York politics, having intervened and influenced elections in New York several times, replacing pro-Taiwan legislators with pro-China legislators, both Democrats and Republicans.
After Sun’s arrest last year, Governor Hochul expelled Chinese Consul General Huang Ping, who was close to Sun, but Chen Shanzhuang hosted a farewell ceremony for Huang Ping.
While Chen Shanzhuang has been active in promoting Chinese influence, he has not been investigated or charged with any misconduct by U.S. authorities, except for his past record of human trafficking as a “snakehead.”
An article by a Chinese Communist United Front Department deputy minister in 2018 suggested a strategy of blaming negative reports on China’s overseas policies on Western white supremacists and discrimination against Chinese-Americans.
Regarding Asian-American issues in the United States, Chinese Communist united front mobilization tends to make Chinese feel fearful, negative, and adopt a mindset that America is against them. The focus of participants’ rhetoric is that they feel community security is threatened, whether due to violent crime, illegal immigration, homeless shelters, or exclusion and neglect by the ruling political elites.
When Mayor Adams criticized anti-housing protests as potentially racist against single black people, CAACR led by Chen Shanzhuang quickly held a press conference to counter that Adams playing the race card was suppressing the voices of Chinese-Americans.
When Chinese students at George Washington University lobbied the school to tear down posters of a Chinese dissident artist, claiming the posters incited “inter-racial hostility” and posed a violent threat to Chinese students’ personal safety.
The article in Foreign Policy states that allowing the Chinese Communist regime to continue to exploit and manipulate social and political issues in the United States poses a danger to U.S. national security and democratic freedoms.
Chinese Americans in the U.S. should realize that as they engage in politics to speak out for their rights, they must not fall into the trap of Chinese Communist “racial confrontation” and should not be manipulated by the influence of China.