Why Are Hate Crimes Committed Against Asians at an All-Time High?

During the pandemic, cases and deaths aren’t the only things on the rise. Hate crimes committed against Asians have happened all over the world have increased exponentially since the start of the Pandemic. Compared to before, an example being the U.K, the number of hate crimes being reported to the police in the first couple months of 2020 outnumbered the amount that was reported back in 2018 and 2019 combined. There are horrifying cases that have been reported, one, in particular, had taken place in California’s Bay Area and was committed against Vicha Ratanapakdee who was 84 and shoved to the ground by a 19-year-old man who ran at him, which resulted in the elderly man to suffer grave injuries and led to his passing two days later. So now the question is, why? Why are people going after Asians during this pandemic? The other question is, what can we as the general public do to help?

The reason Asians are being targeted is that there is a misconception where people believe that Asians are the reason there is the coronavirus in their country. According to cases reported to Russia’s SOVA - a group that keeps watching over racism and xenophobia in their country - people have yelled at Asians saying that “the Chinese brought coronavirus to this country” in public spaces. These people believe that since the virus originated from Wuhan, all Asians are somehow related to the spread of it which isn’t correct. Anyone can spread the virus, regardless of their age, color, or race, so judging people based on their race isn’t good, and must be stopped.

That brings us to our next point: what can we as the general public do to help? According to John Yang, the president, and executive director at Asian Americans Advancing Justice, there are ways that we can support the people who are being targeted. We should help our community out by making it safer, an example being that the Asian elders should be safe when they go out, and when there is a hate crime, we must help the victim out. Next, we should talk to everyone about this, not just Asians because according to John Yang, “we’re all in this together. And if we all feel that connective thread, that connective tissue, that’s what’s going to lead to longer-term solutions, longer-term protection of all of us during this environment.” His last step is to educate everyone about the history of Asians (mainly in America). The mistreatment of Asians goes back hundreds of years, especially with the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.

With all of this information, it is our goal to be able to educate you more. Now that you know, if you ever see an Asian hate crime happening in your community, don’t be a silent bystander. Intervene, and stop the assaulter from verbally or physically assaulting the victim. If you are afraid, call the police or yell for the help of the people around you. We must not let our Asian community go through this alone, because it is not their fault and they should never think that it is their fault. The least we can do is to help them through this traumatic time.

Until next time, Keerthana

Sources:

1. https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/05/12/covid-19-fueling-anti-asian-racism-and-xenophobia-worldwide#

2. https://www.npr.org/2021/02/12/966940217/anger-and-fear-as-asian-american-seniors-targeted-in-bay-area-attacks

3. https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/asian-american-racism-violence-1127876/