Do not get in the way of an Asian man and his racquet sports. Specifically, badminton. This is an awesome story of 86-year-old Chinese American man who took on the city of San Francisco when it started messing with his favorite sport... and won: San Francisco Loses at Badminton, Outmatched by an 86-Year-Old
Since January, Ed Leong has campaigned against the city's new badminton court fees -- $4 to rent a court for 45 minutes -- which he says unfairly affected ethnic Asians, who, as you may know, really really really love to play badminton. And dammit, they want to play for free.
Now, we all know times are tough, and city budgets are tight. But San Francisco didn't impose similar fees for basketball and volleyball, which are played on the same gym floors as badminton is. What is up with that?
Word of the fee spread through the city's Asians communities. Leong collected 200 signatures opposing the charge, presented a petition to Mayor Gavin Newsom's office, staged a rally in front of City Hall and persistently called local politicians to complain.
City Hall found it too hard to fight the community outcry. Ed Leong had effectively become a pain in their ass. The Parks Department eventually declared it would drop the badminton charge in March and come back in April with a lower fee -- $1 for 45 minutes -- for badminton, volleyball and basketball alike. Like I said, do not mess with Asian Americans and their badminton. You will lose.
