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Daniel Dae Kim Says His Sister Could No Longer Run After 2015 Anti-Asian Hate Crime Attack
"Lost" actor Daniel Dae Kim is speaking out about the anti-Asian hate crimes against his younger sister. He says his sister was targeted six years ago because of her race.
Actor Daniel Dae Kim is speaking out about a vicious hate crime against his sister six years ago that he says robbed the once avid runner of the ability to pursue her passion.
Kim, of "Lost" and "Hawaii Five-O" fame, told People magazine in an interview that his sister, Connie Kim, was out on her for a daily run when a driver screamed and told her to get out of their way. She moved, but the driver hit her twice, knocking her to the ground, he said.
“This man specifically targeted her because of her race and tried to run her over with his car repeatedly,” Kim said. “Because of the injuries sustained in the attack, she is not able to run anymore.”
The family endured more heartbreak when law enforcement officials discouraged them from pursuing hate crime charges as successful prosecution is too difficult, he said.
“You should just hope for whatever you can get,” Kim told CNN in March that officials had told them at the time.
His family later discovered that the suspect had a record of allegations of violence against Asian women. Kim said the man was convicted of a reckless driving misdemeanor in his sister's case.
Despite the setback, Connie Kim praised her brother for support.
“I know Dan always has my back, and that gives me a feeling of stability and security that is invaluable,” she told the magazine.
Kim has long been an advocate against anti-Asian hate crimes, especially as such incidents soared during the COVID-19 pandemic. He testified in March on Capitol Hill urging Congress to pass the No Hate Bill and the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act.
“I’m not naïve enough to think that I’m going to convince all of you to stand up for us,” he told the Subcommittee on Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties. “But I am speaking to those whom humanity still matters.”
That was two days after a gunman allegedly killed six Asian spa workers in and near Atlanta. Kim said he was stunned when he heard a sheriff’s spokesperson describe the suspect as having “a very bad day.”
He told the magazine that the shootings also hit home because law enforcement also appeared to minimize the attack on his younger sister.
As previously reported by Oxygen.com, Kim joined forces with fellow actor Daniel Wu to offer $25,000 to find the suspect who assaulted a 91-year man in Oakland.
“I think of my efforts as one of a collective,” he said. “The Asian-American community as a whole started standing up and speaking out in a way I hadn’t seen in a long time.”
