A protest display in Chinatown made up of messages, slogans and art work to show support for demonstrators in Hong Kong has been vandalized, highlighting the inflamed divisions within New York City’s Chinese community around an escalating overseas conflict.

The tearing down of a so-called "Lennon Wall" on Grand Street was the latest sign of the political disagreement within the city's diverse Chinese community over the nearly three months of pro-democracy demonstrations in Hong Kong that has resulted in violent clashes with police and arrests.

Activists said the Lennon Wall in Chinatown appeared as recently as last Friday on the plywood barrier of a construction site. More elaborate displays have sprung up across Hong Kong in the wake of the unrest there.

Earlier this week, the Lennon Wall in Chinatown had roughly one hundred Post-It notes with messages of support, written in both Chinese and English, for Hong Kong.



The Lennon Wall on Monday. (Elizabeth Kim / Gothamist)

By Thursday afternoon, however, most of the notes had been ripped off and replaced with counter-protest messages that included, “Hong Kong is part of China,” “Hong Kong is China’s bitch forever,” and several other profanities.

According to one pro-Hong Kong activist who asked not to be named, the display had been torn down by 10:30 p.m. Wednesday. Some individuals tried to restore the messages only to find them taken down again in the early morning hours of Thursday.

A 25-year-old student from Hong Kong named Au told Gothamist that she and others believed the pro-Beijing activists were responsible for the vandalism because some had scrawled messages in simplified Chinese characters, which is the form of writing developed under the communist era and is still used today in mainland China. Taiwan and Hong Kong, meanwhile, use a traditional script.



(Elizabeth Kim / Gothamist)



(Elizabeth Kim / Gothamist)

On Thursday, Au was among a handful of Chinese students in their twenties who came to help restore the Chinatown display. She had only arrived in New York two days ago, she said, and added that she had participated in protests in Hong Kong. A former British colony, the southern coastal city is considered a special administrative region of China that is semi-autonomous.

“I just want to fight for our freedom of speech,” she said, as her eyes welled with tears. “We cannot allow others to silence our voices.”

Hong Kong activists have accused China of running a disinformation campaign on Twitter and Facebook.

Not long afterward, a pair of pro-Beijing individuals arrived and quickly began taping their own messages on the wall. They were written in both Chinese and English.

“Always remember, Hong Kong is part of China,” a man, who identified himself as Harrison, told Gothamist.

The protests, which began in June as opposition to an extradition bill, has drawn worldwide attention for its scale and impact. The demonstrations have included disrupting one of the world's largest airports and rallies by hundreds of thousands of people. Government officials in Beijing have labeled the actions as "terrorism."

The Trump administration has recently cautioned the Chinese government over a possible crackdown as part of a bargaining chip in the trade war.

..deferral to December. It actually helps China more than us, but will be reciprocated. Millions of jobs are being lost in China to other non-Tariffed countries. Thousands of companies are leaving. Of course China wants to make a deal. Let them work humanely with Hong Kong first! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 14, 2019

A pro-Beijing woman named Lisa said, “Things are getting more and more messed up. Whatever they are doing is not helping Hong Kong.”

She added: “It’s just ruining a great city.”



Pro-Beijing messages. (Elizabeth Kim / Gothamist)



(Elizabeth Kim / Gothamist)

The battle over the Lennon wall comes less than a week after a tense confrontation on Saturday. Hundreds of Hong Kong sympathizers turned out in the afternoon at Confucius Plaza for an event organized by NY4HK, which stands for New Yorkers For Hong Kong. But they were jeered by scores of pro-Beijing demonstrators who stood across the street holding Chinese flags and signs that read, “Love China Love Hong Kong,” and “Stop Biased Fake News.”

At one point, bottles were hurled at the pro-Hong Kong demonstrators as they began to march across the Manhattan Bridge. The incident was captured on video. Members of NY4HK immediately blamed the pro-Beijing group, who they said had also made threats to them on WeChat, a popular Chinese messaging app.

On Thursday, emotions were still raw as several passersby stopped to look at the Lennon Wall. Some onlookers said they wanted to understand what was going on.

Those who came to post signs reflected a range of ages and origins. An older Chinese woman came and posted a sign in Chinese she said read, “Hong Kong you are not alone. We are with you.”

A 27-year-old Taiwanese man named Matthew posted Chinese signs that he said meant, “Keep Taiwan free” and “Hong Kong and Taiwan are together.” China has long laid claim to the self-governing island, which has tried to gain recognition and cultivate a relationship with the United States.

“Right now is the time Hong Kongers needs our support,” he explained.



(Elizabeth Kim / Gothamist)



(Elizabeth Kim / Gothamist)

For some, the recent events are all part and parcel of China's political history and the split between communist and anti-communist factions. “We’ve always been divided,” said Joyce, 17, whose mother is from Hong Kong.

Staring at the pro-China messages, she added angrily, “This isn’t respectful at all. They can say this but not on our wall.”

After the pro-Beijing duo left, she and a handful of pro-Hong Kong activists deliberated whether to take down their counter-protest messages.

In the end, they decided to leave them up. Instead, one of them scribbled and tacked on a response: “Hong Kongers defend your freedom of speech as well.”