Early Days of Protest: Myanmar's Military Coup and I

 "I remember the early days of the COVID-19 outbreak in Los Angeles. Although the outbreak actually began in late 2019 and reached the U.S. in early 2020, the gravity of the situation truly hit me as I watched the death toll rise daily in New York City. I had to mentally prepare myself to face the possibility of death calmly. I hope you can understand the fear and uncertainty I felt during that time.

Following government instructions, I isolated myself for 15 days. Within those 15 days, I was sick for 5 days, and thankfully I get a chance to buy a ventilator from Amazon. I was lucky because after five days of illness, my health mostly returned to normal, though I still experienced some difficulty breathing at times. To combat the loneliness and anxiety of isolation, I spent a lot of time online.

Just after my 15 days of isolation ended, I received a phone call from my brother. He told me a military coup was happening at that very moment in Myanmar. Army officials were right in front of him, and he had to hand over his phone. That was the last I heard from him. My brother, Ko Mya Aye, is one of the leaders in Myanmar."

Confused and concerned, I called 911 to inquire about the proper procedures and regulations for protesting in Los Angeles. I learned that I needed to submit a proposal seven days in advance. As someone who had been in the US for less than six months, I was completely unfamiliar with the process. I didn't even know where the Myanmar Embassy or Consulate was located, nor was I connected with the Myanmar community in LA.

Despite this, I decided to stage a solitary protest in front of the Myanmar Consulate. I was prepared to face whatever consequences might arise. My son and daughter-in-law, worried for my safety, insisted on joining me.

Upon arriving at the Consulate, I called the police. We encountered a minor issue with the Consulate security and the LAPD, which resulted in a conversation lasting about an hour. Eventually, two men approached me, identifying themselves as FBI agents. They instructed me to move outside the Consulate's property and assured me that I could protest freely and peacefully on the public sidewalk.

Following this, my family and I were able to protest peacefully. After I shared a live video of our protest, other members of the Myanmar community began to join us. On that first day, we had a total of seven protesters. Day by day, our numbers grew. Eventually, when we protested in front of the Federal Building, we gathered a total of 745 protesters, as documented by the signature record."