The recent violent attacksagainst Asian Americans in the United Stateshave sparked outrage around the world, with advocates warning that the reality is even worse than what has been reported.
According to a recent Harris poll, 75 percent of Asian Americans are fearful of increased hate and discrimination toward them. Connie Chung Joe, CEO of the nonprofit Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Los Angeles, says that there have been at least 2,800 hate incidents targeting Asians nationwide in the past year but that those numbers may be deceptively low.
“You have to think that this is just the tip of the iceberg,” Joe tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue. “A lot of people don’t report it, especially if you come from immigrant communities or English is not your first language. There’s a lot more that is going unnoticed.”
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The hate incidents, which included the murder of84-year-old Thai immigrantVicha Ratanapakdee in San Francisco, are the latest in a troubling spate of attacks and discrimination since theCOVID-19pandemic came to the United States last year.
One attack against a 91-year-old man in Oakland’s Chinatown district led actorsDaniel Dae Kimand Daniel Wu to offer a reward for information that could help find the suspect. (Police arrested a suspect days later.)
The attacks have left members of the community fearful for their safety, with some attacks happening in broad daylight.
For more on hate crimes and racism Asian Americans have faced since the start of the pandemic,subscribe nowto PEOPLE or pick up this week’s issue, on newsstands Friday.
Many advocates have blamed, in part, former presidentDonald Trump— who referred to COVID-19 as the “China virus” and “Kung Flu” — for fueling the racism.
Manju Kulkarni, executive director of the AsianPacific Policy and Planning Council, calls the current administration’s recognition of racism “a promising step moving forward.” But she says much more action is needed.
“A lot of work is going to be needed moving forward,” Kulkarni says. “If each and every one of us gets involved, then we’re going to be able to tackle this together.”
To learn more and to report crimes, go to:Asian Americans Advancing Justice(advancingjustice-aajc.org)Stop the AAPI Hate(stopaapihate.org)National Council of Asian Pacific Americans(aapiern.org),Asian Americans Advancing Justice-LA (advancingjustice-la.org) and Asian Pacific Policy & Planning Council (asianpacificpolicyandplanningcouncil.org).
source: people.com
