The ADL (Anti-Defamation League) denounces racist anti-Asian slurs painted on the Noodle Tree restaurant in San Antonio and hopes the San Antonio Police Department can help bring the perpetrator(s)to justice.

The restaurant was defaced after the airing of a TV news interview with its owner, Mike Nguyen, who expressed concern about his health after Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued his order removing the state’s mask mandate.  The graffiti included “No masks,” an apparent direct reference to the interview, as well as more virulent and erroneous statements that blamed the Asian and Pacific Islander community for the coronavirus pandemic. Others expressed a death wish for Nguyen and told him to “Go back 2 China.”

“We are disgusted and concerned that members of the community would respond with racist slurs to an interview where Mr. Nguyen was expressing concerns for public health and safety,” said Mark B. Toubin, ADL Southwest Regional Director.  “A city as diverse and welcoming as San Antonio should not tolerate such expressions of hate. In fact, the city partnered with ADL to pass a resolution last May denouncing anti-Asian and Pacific Islander hate and all other forms of bigotry.  We applaud city officials for unanimously passing this resolution and thank San Antonio residents who came together to help Mr. Nguyen remove the graffiti from his restaurant.  We trust law enforcement officials will investigate this matter fully.”

ADL is urging Americans to fight all forms of bias, including hate incidents, hate crimes, Xenophobia and discrimination against the Asian American and Pacific Islander Community and is supporting two Congressional resolutions condemning all forms of anti-Asian sentiment related to COVID-19.  You can help ADL #ProtectAllPeople from hate by signing our petition here.

For more information or to set up an interview, contact Dena Marks at 832-567-8843.

ADL is the world’s leading anti-hate organization. Founded in 1913 in response to an escalating climate of antisemitism and bigotry, its timeless mission is to protect the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment for all. Today, ADL continues to fight all forms of hate with the same vigor and passion. A global leader in exposing extremism, delivering anti-bias education, and fighting hate online, ADL is the first call when acts of antisemitism occur. ADL’s ultimate goal is a world in which no group or individual suffers from bias, discrimination or hate.