In the outbreak of Covid-19, there has been a wave of hostility towards the many Asian Americans living in the Bay Area. Many people have blamed the pandemic on faces of the Chinese, going as far as to beat down the elderly Chinese citizens in San Francisco. While they have absolutely no reason to blame Asian Americans, the hate speech and violence only go up as the cases of Covid-19 do. Kelly Yang, an author who moved from China at the age of six, has been in the Bay Area her whole life and now meets the wave of anti-Asian sentiment. It began with one of her students in her online writing course calling her the "Chinese virus" as well as seeing her child get picked as "it" in "Coronavirus tag" for being Chinese. This hate speech would eventually escalate into a woman without a mask using racial slurs and telling Yang to "go back to where [she] came from." This event left Yang with a fear of returning to the park where she was called those words as well as the need to protect her crying child from those who she runs into. So what is being done about this? For a start, over 10,000 people have signed a petition calling on Mayor London Breed of San Francisco to step up against the violence, many have also began to protest, calling upon fellow Asian Americans with the same experiences. While the history of Asian scapegoating can be traced back to the days of the formation of Chinatown, it is more than prominent today.
Being an Asian American, this is extremely disheartening to hear as many of the people in America haven't done anything to cause the outbreak of Covid-19. I believe that a lot of it has to do with past history as well as the need for releasing anger for the current situation. I get that this situation is tough but it gives people no right to use racial slurs, resort to violence or even make a joke about the Asian community. We need to spread awareness of the situation, inform people of what is happening because this simply isn't correct. The fact that younger generations are experiencing the hate as well, is disappointing because we are taught the troubled history of the Chinese American and should have awareness about it.
1. What do you think we should do in order to prevent the spread of anti-Asian sentiment?
2. Why do you think people are acting this way?
3. Are there any other stories you have heard about this? Share them for awareness of the situation.
It’s sad and scary that Asian Americans are facing this kind of hate in the U.S. I agree with you, Evan, that part of it has to do with a history of racism against Asians, but I also think people are acting this way because of Trump's racial slurs while in office. I vividly remember him calling the virus “kung flu,” which directly associates COVID-19 with Asians and encourages racism in the U.S. The graphic video footage I see on the news is horrific (elderly and young Asian Americans being violently attacked and shoved to the ground). I think that educating ourselves on current news as well as America’s history of racism can help spread awareness and combat this awful trend. Combatting Trump’s false claims by educating those that still believe Asians automatically carry and spread the virus on the actual facts would also prevent the spread of anti-Asian sentiment.
ReplyDeleteIt's disappointing to see the way that Asians have been singled out through these violent and racist acts. I believe that the increase in hate violence may be due to the COVID-19 blame being put towards Asians. The only way I can really see this stopping or even being preventable is to stop racism, which is almost an impossible feat. It's scary to have to hear about elderly Asian Americans being attacked, robbed, or deal with what they have to on top of the pandemic.
ReplyDeleteIn January of this year I saw that the cherry blossom tree branches in Japan town were cut by someone who did that hateful act over a few nights, and now those trees won't be able to blossom for a long time since there aren't any branches. I thought that was an example of a cruel and unusual crime because that is something that can't necessarily be fixed and these were historical trees too, so although it didn't physically hurt anyone, it definitely sent a hurtful message. And since then negative attitudes and behavior towards Asian Americans have only heightened or come into the light more. I think people are acting this way because there was a revival of hateful speech and attitudes towards Asian American last year by Trump. This only shows that as much as America has progressed to be open and accepting to people, the less they really have since people can still be hateful and hurtful to others. I think that people need to prevent the spread of anti-Asian sentiment by showing their support towards the Asian community and it will probably have to not only come from Asian leaders, but people of other backgrounds too since people's supporters will see an example of someone they trust and it will lead to be more effective. Even though these actions should speak for themselves.
ReplyDeleteThe cherry blossom story that you talked about is extremely interesting. This proves that even the smallest microagressions and the pettiest crimes will be done just because of the origin of the virus. I definitely agree that Trump added fuel to the fire which already burned for Asian American hate. There is much work to be done but some of the community is taking great steps to do so.
DeleteI agree with Abbie and Caitlin that Trump played a part in how these people are acting towards Asian Americans. Trump openly and repeatedly used racial slurs and blamed China for COVID-19, causing his followers to blame Asian Americans for COVID-19, which is simply untrue. Trump had his own large following during his presidency, and likely still does, and there are a large group of these people who follow him unquestionably, and sometimes, they became physically and verbally aggressive. I believe some of these people are the same people responsible for these attacks on Asian Americans. These attacks are vile, disgusting, and just wrong. I’m truly sorry for everyone who has to endure such pain. As for a story I have seen, last week, I saw a New York Times article about Vicha Ratanapakdee, an 84-year-old man from Thailand, who lived in San Francisco. He was on his daily morning walk when he was attacked, and he died of a brain hemorrhage two days later. This should not have happened, and I am so upset that it did. Here is a link to the article: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/27/us/asian-american-hate-crimes.html
ReplyDeleteIt is so heartbreaking to see how the coronavirus has been called the "chinese-virus" simply because of where it originated. It is unacceptable and the racism that Asian-American community is currently facing is beyond horrible. Shoving over an elderly person because of her race, for example, is a prime example of a hate crime and is boarder line despicable. Keep in mind, China is close to the eradicating the virus and had significantly less cases than the US and the number of cases was climbing exponentially. It is only now due to the vaccines that it was gone down. Like others above have stated, President Trump has most definitely played into the hate and racism. I think right now protesting and speaking out against this issue, bring more awareness helps prevent the spread of Asian-American hate crimes. Also being more aware that they could be taking place in your community and trying to prevent these attacks is another way to help stop the spread.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with the "chinese-virus" terminology, there are many implications that come with that phrase that are simply incorrect. It is a despicable act to push over the elderly and to even blame them and target them for what has happened. We are all affected by the situation so we have to bear the burden together as humans rather than divide into meaningless racial groups and classifications. President Trump set a terrible example, I'm hoping the new administration can make a better impact and address the hate crimes happening towards Asians and everyone else.
DeleteI'm not really sure what we should do, but I know some people are trying to spread awareness through social media although I'm not sure how effective that is. Some of the time, when someone is bombarded with posts telling everyone to stop Asian hate, they can actually become more against the movement and even start going against it when they previously didn't take a stance. Also, a lot of people just repost things just for the sake of reposting whether that be keeping up with trends or trying to seem like they care, but once social media stops talking about it, so do those people, and rarely are any actions taken. I think it's good that people are trying to get the mayor to take action against it, but it's more of a change of mindset than directly forcing people to stop, because that just builds spite. I think a big part of why people are acting this way is party because of Trump like others said but also because of a history of disliking Asians which is able to be taken out now since there's a reason they can attach to Asians.
ReplyDeleteI agree that a large reason for the anti-Asian sentiment is due to former President Trump’s public sentiments regarding Asians during the virus. Since the beginning of the outbreak fall of 2019, Trump has been quick to call the virus “Kung Flu” or “China Virus”. Given his large influence in the nation, Trump set the standard early on that these anti-Asian sentiments are okay, even though it is far from it. I think that moving forward, it is imperative that we continue to educate ourselves and lend support to those who have fallen victim to these anti-Asian sentiments. In addition, I think accountability is key. Those who have taken part in these hateful actions must be condemned and recognized for their ill-actions. As seen in the recent hate crime which killed 8 Asians in Atlanta, it is clear that many perpetrators have not been condemned, but rather defended. In response to the hate crime in Atlanta, one officer described the suspect as having “a really bad day” before the shooting.
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