We sincerely hope this email continues to find you safe and healthy since we last touched base with you amid the COVID-19 global outbreak with the ensuing racial injustices targeting Asians and Asian Americans.
As like many of us, you may now have asked yourself,“How did we get here?”As we struggled to cope with COVID-19 xenophobic harassment and attacks on Asians and Asian Americans, we watched in horror as video showed George Floyd pleading for breath and ultimately his life.
The protests, solidarity from other communities, and support for the Black community are unwavering and finally being heard in the ongoing fight for racial justice. As we have engaged with staff, friends, and community, or witnessed and participated in social media conversations, it is clear that some are struggling with what to do as individuals with this unearthed energy. Our answer to you is that we were made for this moment. We will offer the resources necessary to have courageous conversations about anti-blackness in the Asian community, and how we can be fully entrenched in this fight. Every one of us who has been a victim of racism, who have watched as our friends were treated differently because of their ethnicity, know that it is not the content of our character but the color of our skin that has resulted in inequality; we recognize that the road to racial justice is long.
Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC will continue to stand in solidarity with our sister organizations and communities. We continue to work with the media and our community, offering facts and not fear. We will not stand silently watching Asians and Asian Americans succumb to racist attacks – our bystander intervention trainings have empowered over 11,000 individuals to end harassment in all its forms. Our hate tracker will continue to track hate incidents and we will use this data to address hate at the legislative level.
While the protests and rallies have brought immediate and renewed attention for systemic change, we know long-term change can come through the 2020 Census and the upcoming elections. There’s power in being counted. There’s power in voting. Though census participation and voting are not sufficient to respond to this moment, they are absolutely necessary to effect a societal transformation. The people we elect in 2020 and beyond must be people willing to dismantle systems of racial oppression, who value diversity, and who will fight to ensure that our communities and Black lives matter.
Thanks to you, Advancing Justice | AAJC, as trusted stewards of your support, can work tirelessly to advance our mission. Current updates on our work impacting communities can be found at www.advancingjustice-aajc.org. We are so ever grateful for your commitment to our mission. Please stay safe and healthy. Please know that your voice matters. Join the conversation or share our resources via Facebook or Twitter.
