Thread by @jeffielam

1) this month, a high school pupil was shot in chest by police & another was arrested for slashing a cop's neck from behind with a boxcutter. i talked to 3 pupils to find out what pushed them to the frontlines of #hongkongprotests:

scmp.com/news/hong-kong…

2) i was a bit shocked when i met sophia in person (we chatted on telegram earlier). i'm only 155cm tall, and she is shorter than me and has a soft toy pig keychain on her backpack. she then told me she is on the very frontline responsible for extinguishing tear gas.

3) she's v eloquent (a debate team member). instead of putting it lightly she's ready for jail, she says:
“It will be imprudent for me to say I'm ready for the 10y jail term. I dare not say it would be worthwhile, but I'll say I have no regrets if this is the risk I must bear.”

4) then i met bosco, who seems to be an introvert. describing himself as someone who seldom puts his words into action, he says no one in his sch would have thought he is a hardcore protester.
he's being honest on this:“The efforts will be worth it if we win, but not if we lose.”

5) then there's athlete henry, who admitted the dangerous standoffs w/ police have sometimes been thrilling. he recalled how he felt he was in a “Korean drama” when he had to sweep a female teammate into his arms & rescue her from tear gas. (i can still rmb his sheepish smile!)

6) he is also right about one point: “Not everyone is Joshua Wong and Edward Leung. Not everyone can turn the jail term they served as political capital." many of them, after all, are just ordinary students not eyeing a career in politics who will not get media attention

7) all of them are f.6 pupils who will face uni entrance exams next year. they move between two conflicting worlds: they have clear plans for their future but at the same time are doing sth that could ruin their plans. (we fix the intv to fit their schedule to join uni open day!)

8) it's saddening to see young pupils risking their future to be on the very frontlines. some might find them innocent or silly to believe their sacrifice would help hong kong achieve democracy. but i hope this story would help people understand why they are doing it.