Ajamu Johnson, a Chicago native who had been detained in Shanghai Qing Pu Prison in China since December 2014, was released earlier this month. He was met at O’Hare International Airport by close family members, many of whom live in Oak Park.
Johnson, 38, had traveled to China to teach English but was sent to prison on Dec. 10, 2014 after he got into a physical altercation with another American, a white man whom media reports have identified as Andrez Ratajczak.
In a recent interview, Johnson said he’d only known Ratajczak in passing, but a brief encounter with the stranger in a campus building would change his life.
Johnson said Ratajczak approached him one day while the he was walking to class. He said Ratajczak was yelling racist epithets during a confrontation that Johnson said he recorded on his phone.
“I thought he may have been drunk or was joking at the time, so I didn’t take him seriously until about a minute or so into the whole thing. That’s when I started recording,” Johnson said.
He encountered Ratajczak again not long after the first incident. Johnson and his girlfriend were walking to a restaurant when they were approached by Ratajczak and a group of his friends.
Johnson said he didn’t want to belabor the details of the incident but noted that he was forced to defend himself after Ratajczak taunted him and followed him and his girlfriend back to the campus. In the ensuing confrontation, Johnson said, Ratajczak received injuries that authorities said were serious enough to hospitalize him.
After the incident, Ratajczak was allowed to leave the country while Johnson’s passport — an instrument vital for employment — was seized. He was eventually sent to jail.
“My lawyer told me that he was reasonably certain I wouldn’t go to jail and that I would just be deported,” Johnson said. “There are lots of questions that need to be answered. To this day I haven’t received any feedback on how my case was handled.”
Johnson said he experienced emotional trauma, financial distress and defamation of character while behind bars. Both Johnson’s dad and aunt died while he was locked up.
“You’re sitting with 12 other men in a 10 x 6 size room. They want to put pressure on you to break,” he said. “It’s a huge setback for me and my career. I take it very seriously.”
Prison officials attempted to coerce prisoners into making statements they didn’t agree with, said Johnson.
“They’re playing a vicious game and playing with people’s lives.”
Last June, the Johnson family protested Johnson’s imprisonment with state Rep. La Shawn Ford (8th) at the Chinese Consulate located in downtown Chicago. Ford hand-delivered a stack of nearly 29,000 petition signatures to consulate officials calling for Johnson’s release.
“The next step is to speak with the people who helped me [like] Congressman Danny K. Davis, Rep. La Shawn Ford,” Johnson said. “I’m thankful to be back in the city of broad shoulders.”
Johnson’s mother, Dalila Johnson, said it’s a big relief to have her son back home, and she’s thankful for the support she received from the family and community.
After reuniting with their newly freed relative at the airport, the Johnson family took a few family pictures and then headed home.
“We’ve been together through thick and thin. I didn’t expect anything less of them,” Johnson said. “I love them so much because I know my situation weighed heavy on their hearts.”
Johnson said his story isn’t an isolated incident, that people in China are serving life sentences that would merit probation in America. He said the bigger issue is for America to have a better accounting of citizens abroad.
“It’s important for us to not forget that the American people are our greatest asset. That should be our utmost priority going forward,” he said.
CONTACT: michael@oakpark.com
