About Virginia Yu

The Virginia Yu Fund for Social & Economic Justice is named in honor of the late guidance counselor, activist, social worker, loving wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend.  Virginia was born in New York City in 1972, the daughter of Chinese immigrant garment workers from Hong Kong.  Her family grew up in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. She had two older sisters, Sheila and Karen and one younger sister, Betty.  Starting at the age of thirteen, Virginia had to work along side her parents in the garment factory to help make ends meet.  After graduating from Edward R. Murrow High School Ms. Yu pursued a Bachelor's degree at SUNY Binghamton and later a Master's degree in social work  at Buffalo University. Her  commitment to social change, justice, and community empowerment is reflected in her life's work.  In 1994,  she joined Chinese Staff &  Workers Association (CSWA) , a workers rights organization.  She and other young people decided to support workers who were standing up for their rights by organizing a hunger strike in front of a major law-breaking restaurant in Chinatown, Jing Fong Restaurant.  The hunger strike helped workers break through the media blackout of sweatshop conditions and helped CSWA challenge the portrayal of Chinese workers as "happy slaves".  The waiters of the restaurant ended up winning one of the biggest workers' settlements in NYC's history.  Virginia also won over her younger sister, Betty, and her mother, Sau Kwan, to join the fight.

While organizing alongside Chinese immigrant workers at CSWA she realized there was a need  for an organization that advanced the common concerns of all workers.  In 1996, she was a co-founder of National Mobilization Against Sweatshops (NMASS).  One of the key demands of NMASS, inspired by the plight of workers like her parents who toiled long work hours, and in recognition that long hours were spreading to all kinds of workplaces, was for workers to have control over their time, starting with the right to a 40-hour workweek at a living wage as a human right for all.  As a founding member of NMASS, she was a co-recipient of the Union Square Awards.

Returning to New York City after her studies, she worked for the New York Asian Women's Center, counseling battered women and eventually directing a women's shelter.  Seeking a career change, she became a guidance counselor at Parson School of Design and at City Tech College of CUNY and eventually became a guidance counselor at Lower East Side Preparatory High School. Virginia and her husband Nelson had two children, Ian and Sonia.  Throughout her final years, even while working a full time job and raising two children, Virginia maintained her participation in community organizing. Virginia loved life and enjoyed nature hikes, jogging, traveling and spending time with her family.  She was a thoughtful person, and good hearted to a fault, always seeking to help others.  

For many people, Virginia is an inspiring leader who opened their minds and was a passionate fighter for justice. Her fighting spirit and community-oriented nature continues to inspire so many of us today and into the future.