In spring 2017, then Mayor Bill de Blasio announced that he’d be closing Rikers Island Jail - a deteriorating facility that’s overcrowded, understaffed, and plagued by violence.  Four new neighborhood facilities will be constructed in its place. The Manhattan facility is set to be built right in the heart of Chinatown, and it’ll be the tallest jail in the world–stretching 40 stories high. They’re calling it a Megajail.

But Chinatown residents are overwhelmingly opposed to the plan. Norina Li is one of those concerned residents. For more than three decades, her parents have run K.K. Discount, a small store that sells home goods and Asian decor. It’s just a block away from the site where the jail is set to be constructed. 

In this episode we talk to Norina about the Megajail, and what she thinks might happen to Chinatown if no one puts a stop to it. We also hear from Victoria Lee, the co-founder of Welcome to Chinatown.

Chinatown rallies against proposed “mega jail”: https://epicenter-nyc.com/chinatown-rallies-against-proposed-mega-jail/

Remembering the Atlanta spa shootings - To be Asian and Atlantan right now: https://epicenter-nyc.com/to-be-asian-and-atlantan-right-now/

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