. Posted by Sherrie Thai by Shaireproductions.com .
Racism against Asians in America has been around since the 1800s, but within the last year, the ignorant Anti-Asian rhetoric from the former administration (blaming Covid on Asians), sparked upticks in racist attacks, with 68% of them were against women. Emboldened by the anonymity of masks and the lack of people on the streets, cowards have emerged, creating chaos and pain.
It is been devastating that during this Women’s History Month, there has been a mass shooting of women. The Georgian shooter of 6 Asian women was dismissed as a ‘sex addicted guy who was having a bad day’. That sad excuse is part of how Asians have been treated, where racist acts are overlooked, where Asians are deemed “overly sensitive”, and have been the punchline to jokes (even before Covid), dehumanized and degraded into nothingness, where violence is excused as a fluke. The murdered women were the most vulnerable–immigrant women, who were trying to support their family and survive. The racist stereotypes of the hyper-sexualized Asian woman fetish (yellow fever) mixed with misogyny caused this. Racism caused this. The continued dismissal of the hatred prevalent in our communities is killing us; as a society of different races, an offence to one race is an offence to all. Asians have been considered “statistically insignificant”, and the hatred has festered and created an environment of anger and fear. The Model Minority myth created out of white supremacy from the 1960s, was designed to pit races against each other and has been used as an excuse not to focus on the dire needs of an already vulnerable community.
Inspired by the reawakening of racial justice from George Floyd protests, there has been greater conversation and actions of racial justice; I hope that continues. Steps to combat the hate: Educate yourself, Become an Ally, Mobilize (speak up, volunteer, donate), and Spread the Love (support each other). Combat racism with solidarity.
. Posted by Sherrie Thai by Shaireproductions.com .
This Chinese Takeout container graphic was created to raise awareness about the increased overt racism faced by Asians during these Covid times. Anti-Asian rhetoric from ignorant leadership has created pandemic scapegoating, igniting additional violence, and xenophobia. In Chinatowns within the US, small business owners’ loss of income has sometimes amounted to 90% due to the racism with joblessness at 80% (according to NBC), displacing community members with no where to go, especially with economic and language barriers. For Asian-Americans, the fear and anxiety is three-fold — from obtaining the virus, being targeted and losing their livelihood.
The Model Minority myth created by politicians and media (since the 60s) have hurt the Asian community as social and economic services have passed over community members in poverty, voices are silenced/dismissed, while pitting races against each other. As in the 60s with the civil rights movement, history has taught us that speaking out for our rights is a fundamental need. Promoting multiracial solidarity while building strong dialog/relationships between all communities is important to combat the hate. It is an ongoing work-in-progress, but one which we need to constantly nurture.
While times are tough, please support local businesses and consider the people behind the counter, especially when craving that delicious noodle dish or boba 🙂
Additional resources:
@hateisavirus_ : https://hateisavirus.org/
@advancingjustice_aajc : https://www.advancingjustice-aajc.org/
@stopaapihate : https://stopaapihate.org/
. Posted by Sherrie Thai by Shaireproductions.com .
Wounded Dragons artwork was created from the sadness and pain of the Anti-Asian sentiment sweeping the US and worldwide. While racism against Asians in the US have long existed since the 1800s, the Covid epidemic has caused an alarming 1900% uptick in racist attacks, resulting in deaths and injuries, including the most vulnerable (recently, with the death of Vicha Ratanapakdee). Fueled by the ignorant rants of the previous administration which normalized overt racism and xenophobic fears, Asians are unfortunately viewed as the virus and scapegoats during Covid, even though the virus carries no ethnicity. My heart breaks everyday for the pain caused by such ignorance.
Racism sometimes starts out as seemingly “harmless” jokes and become internalized hatred, evolving into aggression and violence. According to @stopaapihate, 2/3rds of Asians in the US experience fear and anxiety from being targeted for attacks–I am one of them. Before Covid, I’ve experienced attacks in both physical and verbal forms, and have seen violence on my loved ones–blood streaming down their faces, bewildered at what happened to them. Now, during Covid, the threat is amplified. Historically, Asian-Americans have been a group of silent survivors, dealing with racism quietly; oftentimes, when it is reported, nothing is done by those in power and dismissed as a novel incident, but everything is at a tipping point and action is needed, not just from a political level, but a social one as well. The dismissiveness and silencing of Asian voices due to the perceived “model minority myth” is contributing to the perpetuation of hate. Solidarity is a community commitment.
For the art, I didn’t want to be too literal with people subjects but more symbolic with Eastern Dragons, exhibiting the emotion and pain.
What can be done:
-Be an Ally. Raise awareness, speak up and condemn the racism. When you see something happening, speak out and help.
-Educate yourself on what’s happening, the histories and why it’s happening.
-Have Interracial/cultural Dialog. We thrive when there’s common understanding.
-Get involved. There are great community organizations and movements.
Resources:
Stop AAPI Hate
Advancing Justice
Hate is a Virus
Act to Change
@stopaapihate @racismisavirus @apilegal @acttochange @aaja_alc @selfhelpelderly @chinatowncdc @caasanfrancisco @asianswithattitudes #endracism #standforasians #stopasianhate #hateisavirus #artactivism #activistart #peacefulprotest #stopracism #asianamerican
Interesting reads:
Upworthy
SF Chronicle
AirBnb
USA Today
Rolling Stone