XM Knowledge Base
We are actively anti-racist, and we stand against the injustices caused by racism.
Amid the backdrop of the pandemic, racism and violence against the Asian American and Pacifc Islander (AAPI) community has dramatically increased over the past year. The number of hate crimes in major cities rose nearly 150% in 2020 compared to the year before. Stop AAPI Hate’s database has received 2808 incidents of discrimination,126 of those cases involved Asian Americans that were 60 years old or older.
Asians continue to raise their voices about the discrimination in their communities — something history has shown to be increasingly prevalent during times of crisis.
For example, in 1980, a Chinese American man was mistaken as Japanese and beaten to death, and blamed for the loss of auto jobs. After 9/11, South Asians were targeted with Islamophobia.
We all have a role to play when it comes to acknowledging the injustice, elevating their voices, and driving change.
Let’s take action together to support the AAPI community.
Here are six ways you can show up as an ally:
1. Proactively learn about discrimination and challenges
Read about the struggles of why AAPIs continue to be minimized, or why AAPIs as a whole are seen as a community that doesn’t experience racism.
- How the Model Minority Myth continues to perpetuate the conversation around AAPI, despite rising inequities within the community
- Perpetual Foreigner stereotypes that continue to be passed down generation after generation of American citizens
- Long read about how Pacific Islanders are often left out of the conversation
- Microaggression examples experienced by Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders
2. Speak up and raise your voice
Help create awareness via social media, day-to-day conversations, or within your community.
- Report hate crimes at stopaapihate.org
- Call out that language. Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance suggests trying something like, I don't get it. Can you explain why that's funny? They also offer a more direct response to COVID-related anti-Asian racism: That's not funny and that is not how the virus actually works.
- Help translate resource materials in different languages in your own community
3. Lean in with Empathy
Understand that your empathy is not a zero-sum concept. Your friends, colleagues, and community members are struggling and their safety is at risk.
- Check-in with your peers. Ask ‘how are you feeling about this?’ and let the person impacted lead the conversation. Understand they may not respond, and that is okay.
- Listen to their experiences. Create space by simply acknowledging the situation. ‘I am aware of what is happening in the AAPI community. I want to support you right now, please let me know what you need.’
4. Don’t be a bystander
Many people aren’t sure how to respond if they witness microaggressions, discrimination, or racism in action. Equip yourself with the right resources.
5. Educate yourself on the history of xenophobia and anti-Asian racism
Learn about the complex relationship the AAPI community has with the United States, through the centuries of history.
- PBS Documentary on Asian Americans to learn about their history in the United States
- Yellow Peril and how Asian Americans have long been considered as a threat to immigration policies in the U.S.
- China Exclusion Act,1882 was the first major law to restrict immigration based on race.
- Filipino Public Health Notice was created during the Philippine-American War, where Filipinos were profiled as unclean and savage
- Japanese American Internment Camp was an Executive Order against Japanese citizens and immigrants
6. Support your local communities
Asian-owned restaurants and shops have been shutting down in masses. In NY, spending in Chinatown has declined by 82%. To build up the strength of our communities, we are highlighting a few local ways to support them.
Additional Resources
Additional news articles:
- Violence Against Asian Americans and why ‘hate crime’ should be used carefully
- Op-Ed: My low-level anxiety about being Asian in America has morphed into fear
- Asian American Lawmakers call for a hearing on anti-Asian racism
- NPR: model-minority-myth-again-used-as-a-racial-wedge-between-asians-and-blacks
- CNN: Asian American Racism Violence Response Trend
Organizations to follow on social media:
How to spend your money: