Racism and Hate By Any Name are Unacceptable
The last 36 hours have been very upsetting to hear yet again of more anti-Asian violence. When I have reached out to my friends and colleagues of the Asian, Asian American, and Pacific Islander communities, I have grappled with how to simply ask, “How are you?” It seems like a simple question, doesn’t it? As a Black woman, I’ve sat many times on the other side of that question as it was posed to me. To answer sometimes I think, I’d have to call the ancestral roll to give voice to the generations of peoples ravaged by racism, hatred, persecution, and death. No doubt members of Native American, Indigenous, Black, Latino and Latinx, and LGBTQIA communities – and many others – would know what I’m talking about.
The news of the most recent killings in Atlanta has left me with a tightness in my throat and a constant pain in my belly. You and I know that hate, racism, and targeted violence – regardless of the motive – are completely unacceptable. We must stop pretending that this is a problem we cannot do anything about. We can! Let’s begin with conversations at home with our friends and loved ones.
Today as we reach out to our Asian friends, let’s do so in love. Sometimes, it seems when we want to be the most loving and compassionate, our words fail us, but do it anyway. Join me in body and heart, and assume the revolutionary posture of love. Whether sitting, standing, fighting, resisting, holding, or weeping, let us join with our friends, neighbors, and colleagues of the beloved Asian, Asian-American community and stand as one.
Carmen C. Marshall
Director, Maryland Nonprofits Consulting Group
Carmen also leads the Justice Equity Diversity and Inclusion work at Maryland Nonprofits.
#RememberBreonnaTaylor #RememberGeorgeFloyd #StoptheHate #StopKillingUs
New York Times, Eight Dead in Atlanta Spa Shootings
Stop the AAPI Hate
https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2020/07/01/many-black-and-asian-americans-say-they-have-experienced-discrimination-amid-the-covid-19-outbreak/
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/17/us/hate-crimes-against-asian-americans-community.html