By: Neha Parthasarathi
Since the COVID-19 pandemic had begun, hate crimes have been on the rise. A jaw dropping 3,800 anti-asian hate related incidents have been committed. The vulnerable elderly, a community that has been hit the hardest, was viciously attacked because of their race, their ethnicity, their heritage; that's something we all should be proud of and not afraid of.
This has been extremely disheartening and quite alarming to many of the youth in our communities. Like Malala Youzafzai once said “When the whole world is silent, even one voice becomes powerful.” They followed her words and organized an anti-asian hate rally in a local Santa Clara county park.
The minute I entered the park, my eyes brightened up. The sight of several people together supporting a unified cause warmed my heart. Many local representatives including Kansen Chu (San Jose City Councilman apart of the California Asian & Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus), Janani Ramachandran (California’s first South Asian Assemblywoman/ first LGBTQ Assemblywoman/domestic rights attorney), Chappie Jones (Vice Mayor, City of San José), Rishi Kumar (Saratoga City councilmember) and many other supporters came together to speak out against the hate in our communities. It was in my amazement that children as young as 10 understood the depth of these structural problems and spoke out about it.
Chappie Jones had addressed his concerns through his beautiful analogy about love and hate. He said,“Hate is not natural. We were all born with the natural human need to be loved. That is something we had in us since the day we were born. Hate is something we can unlearn, so we have to do everything we can to spread love. Everyone show love, if they give hate we give love.”
Janani Ramachandran had also voiced her opinion on the hate within the AAPi community. She explains, “Our communities are not dispensable, we deserve respect, we deserve rights, and we deserve representation. My name is Janani Ramchandran and I’m running to be California's very first South-Asian assembly member. In fact today we have no AAPI women in our state government whatsoever. AAPI is a broad word and many members of this diverse community get left out: south asians, sikhs, pacific islanders, east asians, filipinos. We are a beautiful umbrella of immigrants in this country and most importantly Americans. Crimes against AAPI’s have been rising especially among our immigrant communities and elders. Our stories of violence have been lost in the media after 9/11. My mother also wore a bindi and feared being pulled over by police, being pulled over by others because of her bhindi. I don't want anyone to have to feel that fear, my grandma, my aunts, my neighbors, anyone. Violence is certainly hate crimes, but it also forms non physical violence. Violence is not having court interpreters for people of color like Tamils, Telugu, and many more. Violence means not having immigrants allowed in this country. We deserve respect and we are Americans."
How can you help to raise awareness about AAPI hate?
Being informed and educated regarding AAPI is the most important step to raise awareness regarding hate. If you see a hate crime, speak out and report it immediately, check in on your Asian-American friends, reach out to your elected officials, sign petitions, and advocate for laws that help the asian community. There's so much you can do with just your voice.