A Hong Kong entrepreneur-activist said he was “pleasantly surprised” after his pro-democracy slogan was reportedly used in a speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Keita Lee, who ran the National Calamity Hardware Store selling supplies such as hard hats and masks to protesters during last year’s anti-extradition bill movement, told Apple Daily that he was pleased that the slogan he used during his 2015 District Council election campaign has spread not only among local protesters but also across the mainland.

The slogan, loosely translated as “Heroes do not descend from the sky; there are only courageous commoners who stand up to injustice,” was created by Lee’s brother, a musician who was imprisoned for 28 days after he was convicted of assaulting a police officer during the 2014 pro-democracy Umbrella Movement.

Lee’s brother left Hong Kong with his partner and daughter in November 2018.

The slogan has become widespread over the years and rose to prominence during the 2019 protests against a now-withdrawn extradition bill that would have allowed Hongkongers to be sent to China to stand trial.

Lee said the slogan was originally meant to remind Hongkongers not to wait around for external “saviors” but to be self-reliant. The phrase also aimed to show that protesters were everyday people.

The slogan, however, was reportedly co-opted by Xi in a speech delivered on Tuesday at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People in front of 3,000 attendees to honor those who fought against COVID-19.

Lee said it was unlikely that whoever wrote Xi’s speech did not know where the slogan came from since there have been mainland websites that have linked the slogan to Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, even if not entirely accurately.

He said the speechwriter may have thought that the slogan was a powerful way to make people reflect on their roles and contributions during unsettling times.

Even outside of Xi’s speech, the slogan has also made an impression among people on the mainland, said Lee.

“It strikes a chord with those who have been leading a repressed life in mainland China,” he said.

Lee, who has been selling T-shirts printed with the slogan, thanked Xi for drawing more attention to his rallying cry. Sales of the T-shirts have gone up by 50% since the Chinese president’s speech, he said. The National Calamity Hardware Store’s Facebook page also “thanked” Xi for his love and recognition and pledged to continue to promote the slogan’s message.

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