In America, with the spike of COVID, there have been many Anti-Asian Racism incidents taking place in different parts of the country, such as New York, San Francisco, and Georgia. People have been blaming Asians for the outbreak and spread of COVID-19 because the first known infections originate from China.
There are videos of elderly Asian people being beaten up, called racial slurs, and even being spat on by people walking in the street. There are too many incidents of abuse the Asian community must go through, however with time and change a new group has sprouted. This group is known as the #StopAsianHate movement. People apart of this movement are people fighting back against the abuse, holding protests, raising awareness, and helping Asian communities get through this. Standing up for your rights and what you believe in is the first step to getting justice.
When asked if they know anyone who was affected by this movement, Sonia Jong a senior in the Thomas A Edison CTE HS community replied, “I do not personally know anyone who has been affected by the Anti-Asian movement, and I do not know anyone who has been a victim of hate. My mom is a pharmacist, and she is more susceptible to getting COVID, with all the time she spends outdoors. I am afraid that she will be a victim of hate-crimes when people hear her accent or see that she is older and more defenseless.”
The surge of abuse faced by the Asian community is mainly racially motivated. It is no surprise that the elderly are a big target for these types of incidents due to their helplessness. Communities as such must be protected so that no other elderly or young people fall victim to hate crimes. The issues Asian communities are facing aren’t seen as an issue in America by some while others have a different opinion.
Many people in America believe this issue is not a big deal and is not a problem Asian communities are facing. Dinesh Sandeep said,“I think instead of using BLM as a point of bolstering the movement there should be a consistent dialogue between these movements instead. Anti-Asian hate and crime find its roots in the same place as anti-Black crimes: white supremacy.” Former President Donald Trump referred to COVID-19 as the “Chinese virus,” which insinuates his mindset as far as the issues on racism in America go. This is a way of Trump promoting the violence, racism, and abuse against Asian communities. White supremacy is a pertinent issue in the US
The number of #StopAsianHate movement supporters drastically increase as more and more videos of Asian abuse surface on the internet.
When asked where they had heard about this movement Kirk Matthews a college student replied “I have heard about the movement on social media and not the news. I am also seeing organizations and nonprofits hosting events about the topic.” As more social media platforms present and support this movement it is likely that acts of violence in Asian communities will stop.
From March 2020 to February 2021 the nonprofit group known as Stop AAPI Hate (Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders ) documented over 3,800 incidents worldwide. Anti-Asian hate crimes jumped 149 percent in 2020 in America which goes to show the correlation between the leader of the country and the rise of hate directed to a specific group of people. This is a serious issue in the U.S. that needs to be addressed for victims who deserve justice.
