When an elderly 76-year-old woman from California was attacked on the streets, she launched a defense that left the assailant in hospital.

Xiao Zhen Xie was standing on a sidewalk along Market Street in San Francisco waiting at a traffic light when a random man came out of nowhere and punched her in the face.

The woman immediately defended herself using a stick she found close by. This was according to her daughter, Dong-Mei Li:

"She found the stick around the area and fought back."

The woman speaks Cantonese, and she had Li translate what happened on the day the attack happened.

Still In Pain

After the attack, the woman explained through her daughter that she was very traumatized and scared, and her eye was still bleeding after the punch:

"The right eye still cannot see anything and still bleeding and we have something to absorb the bleeding."

The video footage that details the event shows Xie still holding the stick she used to defend herself. The man who attacked her, identified as a 39-year-old man, can be seen strapped to a gurney with a bloody mouth.

According to witnesses, Xie "pummeled" the attack with a "paddle."

After she was punched, she screamed at the man in Cantonese, calling him a bum and asking him why he bullied and hit her.

The police have not yet named the man since they are still investigating the matter. They are also unsure if this was a hate crime, although they are trying to determine if that was the reason behind the attack.

However, the woman was seriously hurt, and her family has set up a GoFundMe page that will help pay for her medical expenses.

Apparently, her wrist was also swollen, and she was also deeply affected mentally, physically, and emotionally.

According to her grandson, the older woman is also afraid to go outside her home. This was revealed on her GoFundMe page.

Xie is a cancer survivor, and the traumatizing attack has left her reeling from PTSD. She also has health insurance, although it does not cover many of her medical expenses.

The elderly woman has also been battling diabetes for a decade.

Many people think the woman was attacked because she is Asian, so the police are trying to find out if this was a hate crime.