Since the start of the pandemic, there has been an influx of Asian American hate crimes. Former President Donald Trump has labeled COVID-19 as the “Chinese virus.” He continues to add blame to a specific race group but has defended himself by saying it is the place of origin of the virus. It is up to our leaders to change this kind of behavior and the recent shooting in Atlanta with eight people killed and six of the victims being of Asian descent has stirred up the rise of anti-Asian Hate protests.  

“I would follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines,” said Mary Tablante, assistant director of the Asian Americans Advancing Justice. “Naming it the Chinese virus doesn’t help combat the problem to defeat the virus.” 

The Asian Americans Advancing Justice is one of the many nonprofit organizations located in Washington, D.C. that has advocated for civil right issues, voting rights, immigrant rights and other issues to promote a fair and equitable society for Asian Americans. They have tracked more than 3,000 incident reports in 2021, which was an increase since the year before. In New York City as of 2019, there have been 428 hate crimes and in 2020 there have been 265 alone. 

Since the shooting in Atlanta, people have mentioned the injustices that Asian women face. Women have been seen as objects for many years and our chances of survival decrease when we refer to women of color.

“As an Asian woman I think they fetishize us too much. Even if that was the reason the shooter killed them in Atlanta,” said Judie Venevuela, a student at SUNY Oswego. “It still doesn’t make the situation better. It shows how Asian women are not being treated as human.”

Many of the organizations and civilian activists that fight against Asian hate have demanded for reform. They are demanding schools and programs become available for individuals to learn the true history of Asian Americans. 

“This situation needs [to improve] at multiple levels. Social media is a critical role among the younger generations,” said Jing Lei, anthropology and linguist professor at SUNY Oswego. “Our education system needs to teach students about different life ways and different groups so that they may have a positive attitude towards inclusion and diversity.” 

The Asian American Advancing Justice has online training as well to help civilians who experience acts of hate crime. This can prepare for future instances for the Asian community and although it is sad to do, it is always better to be more prepared than surprised by the acts of injustice.

“Education and policy will help decrease Asian hate crime,” Mary Tablante said. “We have been increasing intervention and training bystanders to stop Asian hate harassment.” 

Hopefully with more awareness, people will be mindful and through education people are more inclined to live a life of compassion for people that are different from their own.

Photo from Flickr