“GO HOME”

“It was November 1st, 2014, over a month after Hong Kong’s ‘Occupy-Central’ movement began, where students peacefully took over the streets and camped in some of the city’s major centers. As I was walking down the Avenue of Stars, a popular tourist destination that honors celebrities from the Hong Kong film industry, I saw the Victoria Harbor filled with fishing boats with large banners that read ‘GO HOME’ in both Cantonese and English attacking the protesters.

The government and a growing number of Hong Kongers had become increasingly more impatient with the movement as public opinion began to shift toward disapproval of the prolonged protests. They felt that the protests were beginning to deeply effect key industries such as retail, transportation and tourism.

This manner of counter-protesting was an impressive sight to see. I was surprised that tourists, Chinese folk included, would simply continue their visit along the promenade, laughing and posing for photos while completely ignoring these strong messages behind them on the vessels.”