Lam chau, laam chau, or laam caau (), or burnism, is a Hong Kong term referring to a concept of mutual assured destruction. The term has been picked up by Hong Kong protesters as a doctrine against the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Etymology The Hong Kong Cantonese phrase “lam chau” (攬炒) literally means 'embrace fry', which journalist and City, University of London lecturer Yuen Chan explained as meaning "if I'm gonna fry, I'm gonna drag you in with me", comparing it to the English language idiom "if we burn, you burn with us". Comparisons of the term to the English phrase also drew comparisons to the novel and film series The Hunger Games, where a longer phrase, "fire is catching and if we burn, you burn with us", is used as a mark of the revolution overturning the dystopian society. This English phrase has also been used by pro-independence protestors, and was used as the title of a 2020 documentary about the protests. Taiwanese magazine Commonwealth also suggested a literal translation of 攬炒 as "jade and stone burning together". Use Popularized by activist Finn Lau, the term is most prominently used by Hong Kong scorched earth protesters to promote the "burn with us" strategy of achieving Hong Kong liberation from the Communist Party of China (CPC) rule. They call for international sanctions intending to damage Hong Kong financially, which would moreover damage the economy of Mainland China, and undertake protest actions that aim to see retaliation that damages both Hong Kong and China at large. One member of the group said that it is a doctrine of "phoenixism" (scorched-earth defense), saying that Hong Kong will burn but rise again. Other protesters have said that if Beijing feels a threat to their economy coming, they will give the Hong Kong protesters what they want so as to placate them and not receive the financial implications. After the Hong Kong national security law was enacted by China at the end of June 2020, the LA Times reported that the idea of lam chau was "radical" when it emerged in the protest movement in 2019, but "is becoming a reality [...] accelerating each day as China and the U.S. stoke the flames of a conflict that looks set to explode in Hong Kong". In June 2020, after the announcement of the security law, The Daily Beast reported that the term was being