I'm heartbroken, John. Asian Americans are living in fear.

Racism is sadly nothing new in the United States. However, racism against Asian Americans is far too often discredited and downplayed, even normalized.

East Asians, in particular, are often perceived to have a close proximity to societal whiteness, further perpetuated by harmful beliefs like the "model minority myth" constructed by white supremacists to cause a wedge between Asians and other people of color.

These colorist ideals and reducing Asians to their presumed relationship to whiteness have made it far too easy for people of all races and ethnicities (and the media) to erase and minimize the unique racism that exists against members of the AAPI community. And it's extremely dangerous.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic spread and Donald Trump's deflection of his own shortcomings through hateful rhetoric, anti-Asian sentiment has skyrocketed rapidly. In 2020, national hate crimes against Asian Americans increased by over a stunning 150% — even as the number of overall hate crimes fell.

From racial stereotypes and tropes that aim to emasculate Asian men and oversexualize Asian women, to xenophobic attitudes toward anything perceived as "foreign," to presumed proximity to whiteness — the damaging typecasting of Asian Americans has escalated from disturbing patterns of microaggressions and societal exclusion to an even more unsettling trend of outright violence.

These often overlooked racial biases don't exist in a vacuum, and when culminated, result in devastating consequences. And we cannot stay silent.

It should not take these recent spikes in attacks on Asian Americans across the country to recognize and address the unique racism they endure. Most recently, this includes multiple unprovoked assaults on elderly Asian Americans and this week's horrifying tragedy in Atlanta that targeted Asian women and left 6 of them dead.

The fight against ALL racism and white supremacy must be inclusive. And I will continue to use my voice to raise awareness and to stand with the AAPI community.

Sincerely,

Ellen