Vietnamese-Owned Restaurant in California Vandalized, Left With Racist Note
A Vietnamese family-owned restaurant in Sunnyvale, Calif. was recently vandalized and left with a disturbing message spewing anti-Asian hate.
Charlie Tran, co-owner of Le Bon, found the establishment vandalized and its front window destroyed on Sunday afternoon, KTVU reported.
Tran notified police, who then reportedly told him to search the area for "bullets, [a] rock, or a brick." He initially thought it was a random attack by a "delinquent," before finding a note that contained racial slurs.
"When I saw the note on the inside that hurt me more than if it was just a random person breaking our window," Tran recalled.
Written in red on a crumpled piece of paper, the message read: "Dirty f**king [slur used against people of Asian descent], go back to your home.”
Le Bon co-owner and executive chef Jeffrey Nguyen was also shocked that such an incident could happen to them in their community.
Born and raised in South Bay, both Tran and Nguyen are second generation Vietnamese Americans who started a food truck business 10 years ago before opening their brick and mortar restaurant in Sunnyvale four years ago.
It remains unclear who targeted the restaurant as the restaurant’s surveillance cameras failed to capture the incident, SFGate reported. The restaurant is located in an area with several other businesses, none of which were also targeted. The owners are now seeking help from the other businesses in the complex that might have surveillance footage that could help.
Santa Clara County Supervisor Otto Lee said he was disgusted upon learning about the incident.
"This is absolutely not tolerable, unacceptable, and it’s mortifying to find out these types of incidents are still happening right here in Sunnyvale," Lee said.
Sunnyvale has a diverse population, according to KTVU. 40% is Asian while 15% is Latinx.
Nguyen thanked the restaurant supporters via Instagram and said that they will not be asking for donations to cover the damages, according to Eater SF.
Featured Image via KTVU
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