The deadline to give feedback on the proposed redesign of Chinatown Memorial Square is tomorrow Wednesday, April 30.

All three design options fail to honour the Square’s purpose as a site of remembrance, resistance, and community gathering. Instead, they reduce our histories into decorative motifs for condo marketing.

One design features a yellow 'fire dragon' path winding across the plaza — a symbol with deep Hakka cultural roots that is being misused and overlooked.

Our friends at Kirin Rising 麒麟革命, a collective that includes Hakka youth practicing traditional Hakka kirin dance, have raised important concerns:

“Extracting the fire dragon for beautification or tourist appeal at the Chinatown Memorial Square — without honouring its specific history — is extractive, appropriative, and Orientalizing.”

Hear directly from Kirin Rising and read their full post here.

This isn’t just about aesthetics — it’s about which histories are respected and which are erased.

Take action now in two quick steps:

1. Review the designs and take the survey here by Wednesday, April 30

2. Email your concerns directly to: memorialsquareredesign@vancouver.ca

Want more context? Read our original breakdown of the issues with the redesign.