Cardinal Timothy Dolan met with the son of an imprisoned Hong Kong media mogul Friday morning in Manhattan.

Sebastien Lai is visiting the United States as part of the ongoing effort to free his father Jimmy Lai. Lai, a Catholic, is currently held as a prisoner in Hong Kong on charges of subversion and violation of the People’s Republic of China’s National Security Act for his support of democracy, and for owning and running of Next Digital, what was the largest news media group in HK. The company and the popular newspaper it published, Apple Daily, was shut down in 2021 for violations of China’s national security law. Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China.

A painting by Lai of Christ crucified hangs at the back of the sanctuary of St. Patrick’s Cathedral.