On Wednesday July 16, around 80 community members join the Coalition to Protect Chinatown and the Lower East Side’s protest to call on the Honorable Judge Denny Chin, United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit and former Judge of the Southern District of New York, to boycott the Museum of Chinese in America (MoCA). Judge Chin ignored the boycott and crossed the picket line to do an event on that evening as part of the Museum’s MoCA Talks series. By doing so, Chin ties himself to MoCA’s legacy of promoting displacement and the modern day slavery of the 24-hour workday.

MoCA is a symbol of racism, sexism, and displacement in our community. Community members have held a picket line at MoCA for the past four years. MoCA took $35 million in city money in exchange for supporting the construction of the new mega-jail in Chinatown—one that criminalizes our community. Jonathan Chu, former MoCA board co-chair, displaced our community’s beloved and iconic Jing Fong restaurant during the height of the pandemic—when small businesses needed help the most. MoCA’s current president, Michael Lee, is on the board of the Chinese-American Planning Council (CPC), which has stolen $90 millions in wages from Chinese immigrant women workers, forcing them into 24-hour workdays and damaging their health, families, and futures.

Inside MoCA, Judge Chin spoke about the injustices faced by immigrants in this country. Yet when asked about the protest, Chin said the protestors’ criticisms were “unreliable”, despite ample evidence of MoCA supporting the new jail and 24-hour workdays, and victims of CPC’s 24-hour workdays being part of the protest outside the museum. Siyan Wong, a workers’ rights lawyer and artist who lives in the community, called out Judge Chin’s hypocrisy. Wong is among over a dozen lawyers who wrote to Judge Chin urging him not to cross the picket line. Inside the event, Judge Chin admitted that he had received multiple letters urging him to cancel this appearance.

Wong stated: “This picket line started because the bankers, lawyers, and business owners inside this museum threw our community—and the future of our youth—under the bus. And sadly, Judge Chin chose to cross that picket line today. Judge Chin, those well-to-do bankers, lawyers, and business owners inside MoCA have adamantly refused to even speak with their immigrant community. I am deeply saddened by your decision to side with the well-to-do, with those in power—those who have taken advantage of our immigrant working poor.”

Lily Randall, a member of Youth Against Displacement, said: “Why is this judge criminalizing our working people, and protecting our community’s biggest criminals?? This is not simply an error in judgment, it’s clear that Judge Chin stands not with the people, but with the sweatshop bosses and sellouts who want to divide and destroy our community. What Denny Chin is doing is not justice – but our picket line, this community, united against displacement and exploitation, is the power that will bring us justice!”

MoCA even blocked its storefront from the inside, so that those attending the event couldn’t see the community outside. While Judge Chin spoke about discrimination and the Chinese American experience, MoCA security guards hurled threats at protesters—telling Chinese homecare workers that they should be deported, echoing rhetoric straight out of Trump’s playbook. What kind of justice is this? Certainly not justice for homecare workers demanding an end to the 24-hour workday and the people of Chinatown & the Lower East Side fighting to protect their neighborhood from displacement.