Dear John,

Asian Americans have been sounding the alarm about violence spurred by hate and racism in our political discourse.

We have not been listening and acting enough.

While we are still learning about the shootings in Atlanta last night, we know that six out of the eight people killed were Asian women, and that Asian-owned spas and massage parlors appear to have been specifically targeted.

We cannot separate this attack from the unprecedented rise in hate violence against Asian Americans that has left so many of our community members feeling hurt and afraid. We also cannot ignore the fact that the targets appear to have been immigrant women working in a sexualized industry. Over the past year, there have been more than 3,800 reports of anti-Asian racist incidents, mostly against women, including many here in New York City.

This violence and hate did not come out of nowhere. It has been fueled by political rhetoric about the coronavirus, nationalist geopolitical jockeying, and has roots in a long history of exclusionary laws, policies, and wars.

To everyone hurting and scared right now, we stand with you and recommit to the work to ensure that all our community members can live without fear.

If you are looking for ways to support Asian American communities, here are some ideas:

Attend a vigil. There are several being organized around the city, including one I’ll be attending on Friday at 6 PM in Union Square organized by the Asian American Federation.
Volunteer with Safewalx to escort fellow community members to or from a subway station. Learn more here.
Share bystander intervention information or attend a training.
Support Asian American organizations organizing against hate or to support specific communities, like the NYC chapter of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, Red Canary Song, CAAAV, Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Atlanta, or Stop AAPI Hate.
If you need to report an incident of anti-Asian identity-based violence, you can use this multilingual reporting portal or call the New York Human Rights Commission at 212-416-0197.

Sending love and solidarity to all of our AAPI neighbors and community members,

Brad

From a vigil I attended tonight in Diversity Plaza, Jackson Heights, Queens – a community gathering place in one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the world that is itself a repudiation of male white male supremacist violence.