A Tibetan activist died in New York City on Thursday after setting himself on fire outside the United Nations headquarters. The New York City Police Department responded to an emergency call at approximately 6:30 p.m. ET, and the individual was transported to Bellevue Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The man, identified as Lobga Rangzen, a Tibetan activist who worked as an Uber driver in the city, left behind papers reading “China Out of Tibet.” According to reports from amNewYork, Rangzen arrived at the scene with a Tibetan flag and had previously been known within the local Tibetan community. A fellow Uber driver, Lobsang Paljor, stated that Rangzen was “enraged by the restrictions the Chinese government had placed on his countrymen.”

Rangzen livestreamed the incident before taking action, expressing in a video posted to Facebook that he was acting for “my country. For the Tibetan nation,” not personal motives. His final message called for free Tibet, unity among Tibetans, and an end to the Chinese Communist Party’s occupation and repression.

Tenzin Dorjee, director of research and advocacy at Tibet Action Institute—Rangzen’s friend—described him as a central figure in New York’s Tibetan community who participated in “countless demonstrations” and whose life was dedicated to “national liberation.” Rangzen’s protest marks the first known self-immolation by a Tibetan in the United States.

Since 2009, more than 170 Tibetans have self-immolated in protests against Chinese policies, according to Digital Citizens for Human Rights. The practice has been documented as a response to systemic suppression of Tibetan voices, language, culture, and fundamental freedoms.