Here’s How You Can Affect Change
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Speak up and be heard. We encourage the AAPI community to open up and share their stories, successes, and struggles.
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Listen. Provide support by actively listening and showing up for each other. Many have questions on how to best support loved ones affected by AAPI violence. While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, providing an open heart and listening ears can go a long way.
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Step outside your comfort zone. Ask yourself and your loved ones the difficult questions. How did we get here? Why has the AAPI community been targeted? How have we contributed to the Model Minority Myth? Have we properly addressed the anti-Blackness and other inappropriate behaviors within our own culture?
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Educate yourself. Learn more about AAPI history and Critical Race Theory.
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Don’t be a bystander. Call out misinformation or jokes that are racist. Address harmful behavior with friends, family, or co-workers. Intervene when possible.
- Connect with one another. Invite your peers to join in the conversation to learn from each other; share your unique yet often common stories on discrimination, injustice, struggles, poverty, and/or violence.
- Reach out. This work isn’t meant to be done alone. It’s difficult and exhausting. Lean on your loved ones for support when possible.
- Volunteer. Get active in your community by contributing your time to organizations.
Let’s Ask Government Officials and Leaders To:
- Incorporate Asian American studies in K-12 education. We need more than just the Japanese internment camps in our history books. What about the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and other events that impact other Asian groups? What about AAPI leaders and contributions throughout history?
- Pass the Hate Crimes Act. Advocate for tighter legislation on hate crimes. Current legislation is sorely outdated and too narrow—it requires a perpetrator to vocalize racial slurs before and/or during the attack to be considered a hate crime. This is why the Atlanta shooting was not immediately labeled a hate crime by the media.
- Dedicate resources to facilitate safe spaces to grow solidarity between all communities. Ensure government grants are set aside for organizations that do the work.
- Mandate training for spotting and stopping AAPI micro-aggressions. This should occur in all corporate and educational settings where feasible.
- Facilitate community healing. Host talks, seminars, events with trained professionals to encourage the identification of issues and pathways to move forward productively.