Community Organizations Respond to Anti-Asian Violence and the Targeted Murders in Atlanta
March 17, 2021
APIs CAN! and our member organizations are enraged and devastated by the targeted murders of 8 women, most of whom were Asian Americans, in Atlanta.
Increased and unchecked anti-Asian rhetoric during the COVID-19 pandemic has fueled xenophobia and anti-Asian racism. We have seen a rise in attacks on Asian Americans, particularly elderly people, across the country, and a lack of safety in all aspects of our lives. From the Chinese Exclusion Act to Japanese Internment to the Sikh temple shooting in Oak Creek to the disproportionate impact on Southeast Asians in the school to prison to deportation pipeline, racism against Asians is ingrained in this country’s history. Women and femmes experience the brunt of not only this racism, but also the sexist stereotypes of Asian American women, which leads to many types of violence, including what we saw in Georgia yesterday.
Asian American women are on the frontlines of our economic sectors, including as domestic workers and nail salon workers. Asian American women are also the center of our family lives as homemakers and caretakers. Asian American women live simultaneously at the margins of society and at the intersection of immigration, gender, race, and class.
We denounce violence against Asian American communities in all forms, and we call on local, state, and federal governments to:
Support robust and responsive crisis intervention resources, including in-language support for mental health, legal, employment, and immigration services;
Center transformative justice that begins with cross racial dialogue and community-building that address white supremacy as the root cause of violence and hate;
Fund non-law enforcement strategies that invest in communities of color to address long-term systemic racism and extreme inequality -- jobs, housing, immigration, healthcare, education, and more. To end violence, we must ensure our people have the resources and opportunities they need to lead dignified lives; and
Focus on survivors’ needs - ensure victims and survivors of all backgrounds and language abilities receive full supportive multilingual and culturally appropriate services so they can recover and heal.
APIs CAN! is hosting a forum March 25, 2021 6pm-7:30pm highlighting how the Asian American community in MA is organizing against racism and learning how to support our community during the pandemic. RSVP at bit.ly/townhallaar.
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DESCRIPTION OF APIs CAN!
The mission of Asian and Pacific Islanders Civic Action Network (APIs CAN!) is to advance the interests of Massachusetts' Asian and Pacific Islander American communities by promoting a shared agenda to further equity and oppose discrimination through year-round civic action.
PRESS CONTACTS
Lisette Le
Vietnamese American Initiative for Development, Inc. (VietAID)
(617) 970-0052
Dawn Sauma
Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence (ATASK)
(978)-457-0065
Sign Ons Organizations [as of 2:00PM on 3/17/21]:
Asian American Commission of Massachusetts
Asian American Resource Workshop (AARW)
Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC)
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, MA Chapter (APALA)
Asian Task Force Against Domestic Violence (ATASK)
Barr Foundation
Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center (BCNC)
Boston Little Saigon
Boston Pilipinx Education Advocacy Resources (PEAR)
Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association (CMAA)
Chinese Progressive Association Boston (CPA)
Episcopal City Mission
Fil-Lennials of New England
Greater Boston Legal Services - Asian Outreach Unit (AOU)
Greater Malden Asian American Community Coalition (GMAAC)
Hyams Foundation
Institute of Asian American Studies at UMass Boston
Matahari Women Worker Center
Networking Organization for Vietnamese Americans (NOVA)
One Revere
Philippine Mainstream Advocacy for Non-Partisans Association, Inc., (PAMANA)
Quincy Asian Resources Inc. (QARI)
Revere Youth in Action
Social Innovation Forum
TSNE Mission Works
Vietnamese American Initiative for Development, Inc. (VietAID)
Sign Ons Elected Officials [as of 2:00PM on 3/17/21]:
Andrea Campbell, Boston City Councilor District 4
Dan Hunt, Massachusetts Representative 13th Suffolk
Ed Flynn, Boston City Councilor District 2
Erika Uyterhoeven, Massachusetts Representative 27th Middlesex
Julia Mejia, Boston City Councilor At Large
Kenzie Bok, Boston City Councilor District 8
Liz Breadon, Boston City Councilor District 9
Liz Miranda, Massachusetts Representative 5th Suffolk
Michelle Wu, Boston City Councilor At Large
Nina Liang, Quincy City Council President At Large
Sign Ons Individuals [as of 1:30PM on 3/17/21]:
Chu Ly
Crystal Bi Wegner
Cynthia Yee
Darlene Lombos, Greater Boston Labor Council
Dimple Rana, Revere resident and organizer
Elaine Ng
Esther Kim, Counselor at Lexington High School
Eugenia Beh
Giles Li
Go Sasaki, Boston Educator
Hehershe Busuego, Director of Programs & Racial Equity Essex County Community Foundation
Helen Shao
Helena Berbano, Boston Activist
Jean Wu
Jenny Lau
Jessica Tang, Boston Teachers Union
Joy Bautista
Kimberly Truong, Ph.D., Executive Director of Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, MGH Institute of
Health Professions
Lieu Nguyen, Chair, Vietnamese Dual Language Committee
Lusa Lo, University of Boston Department of Curriculum and Instruction
Pong Louie
Richard Chang, Head of School, Quincy Upper School
Sam Hyun, Chairperson of the Asian American Commission
Somy Kim
Sung-Joon Pai
Suzanne Lee
Wayne Yeh
Click here to add your your organization or yourself to the sign on list.