London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 31, 2025

New Zealand woman yells at Asian dad in racist tirade

Andy Wan, who is originally from Hong Kong, says anger over the coronavirus is fuelling racial aggression against people with ‘an Asian face’. In another incident this week, an Asian woman was verbally abused in Auckland after she erased slogans she says were commonly associated with Nazis

A man in New Zealand who was told to “go back to China” has spoken about his experience, which was witnessed by his young child during a school run.

Andy Wan, originally from Hong Kong, was driving his seven-year-old son to school in Auckland, and had slowed down and indicated to parallel park his car when the driver behind him became angry.

Wan, who has lived in New Zealand for 24 years, said he indicated before stopping in front of the parking spot, but an Audi pulled in close behind him, leaving him little room to move into the parking space.

The driver in the other car turned aggressive after Wan got out to check if there was enough room to park, telling him to “f*** off” and “go away”.

“You need to go back to f***ing China you ching chong,” she yelled during the racist tirade, which was caught on Wan’s dashcam.

Wan said he was concerned about his young son having to experience similar acts of racism.

“At school, all the kids play around, no matter what the skin colour,” he said. “They’re happy together, so why do these people still have this kind of thinking?”

He said his son was confused after witnessing the aggressive exchange.

“He kept asking me what happened,” Wan said. “He thought, ‘oh, how come so mean? We are just parking, what’s wrong with us? We didn’t do anything wrong’.”

Wan said there was no oncoming traffic, so the woman could have easily pulled into the other lane and gone around him as he tried to park. “It doesn’t mean because I have an Asian face, she can yell like this.”

The parking incident, which happened on May 19 in Greenhithe, north of Auckland, might have been exacerbated by anti-Chinese sentiment sparked by anger over the coronavirus, he said.

“I guess mostly because Covid-19 makes people more against China,” he said.

He did not experience incidents like that too often in New Zealand, but noticed people seemed to be less tolerant towards those with an “Asian face”.

“I just don’t want my son to get hurt … because he’s Asian or something,” Wan said.

According to statistics from the 2018 census, some 707,600 people identified as being part of the Asian ethnic group, comprising 15.1 per cent of New Zealand’s population.

Wan’s incident was not the first racist incident to make headlines in New Zealand this week.

The NZ Outdoors Party became entangled in accusations of racism after a group of their supporters filmed themselves harassing and threatening a young Asian woman after an event in downtown Auckland.

In the video, unidentified supporters of the political party can be seen chasing the woman and holding phones in her face, with one person screaming at her to go back to her own country.

The woman yells back, telling the filmers they are racist.

“This lady here, she was rubbing out all the chalk,” the man filming can be heard saying, before the video quickly devolves into yelling on both sides.

Another woman who is filming tells the young woman “get away from here … you are racist against us New Zealanders … go back to your own country”.

At one point the other woman says she is going to “kingpin” her and calls her a “smart little b****”.

The young woman reveals in the video she rubbed out chalk slogans stating “it’s okay to be white”, because the saying is commonly associated with Nazis.

She also tells the group that the phrase “all lives matter” is only ever used in reaction to “Black lives matter” as a way to erase Black people.

The Outdoors Party co-leaders Alan Simmons and Sue Grey have condemned the video, saying the racist comments go against what they stand for.

New Zealand’s Race Relations Commissioner Meng Foon said the slogans were “known to be associated with groups who deny that racism exists or who would minimise its impact”.

“Such statements are often intended to convey a message of intolerance, racism and division. There is no place for that in New Zealand,” said Foon, a New Zealander of Chinese descent.

He encouraged bystanders to step up when they saw incidents like this, to “intervene, to record the interaction, and to report”.
“Racist behaviour, use of racist stereotypes, making people feel like they don’t belong in Aotearoa is unacceptable,” Foon said, using the Maori name for New Zealand. “Not only are such actions inconsistent with our values, they infringe on human rights and damage efforts to build inclusive communities.”

Meanwhile on Friday, the city of Hamilton tore down a statue of the colonial military commander after whom it was named, joining a growing list of places worldwide that are reckoning with their past.

Statues and place names honouring figures such as slavers and colonial military figures are being reassessed worldwide in response to anti-racism protests sparked by the police killing of Black American man George Floyd.

A crane hoisted the bronze sculpture of Captain John Fane Charles Hamilton from the town square Friday morning, as a small group of cheering spectators looked on.

Hamilton was a naval commander who fought indigenous Maori defending their land against British colonial expansion in the 19th century.

Hamilton City Council acknowledged the statue’s extraction was part of a push to remove memorials “which are seen to represent cultural disharmony and oppression” sparked by global anti-racism protests.

“I know many people – in fact, a growing number of people – find the statue personally and culturally offensive,” mayor Paula Southgate said.

“We can’t ignore what is happening all over the world and nor should we. At a time when we are trying to build tolerance and understanding … I don’t think the statue helps us to bridge those gaps.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
×