What can I do about hate crimes against Asian Americans?
As an Asian American, I’ve faced various forms of microaggression (everyday actions and comments that harm minority groups) my whole life. Even though they haven’t always been intended to be mean, I knew they weren’t right long before I knew the term, because they always left me feeling hurt.
With the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes this past year, my first reaction was to turn away from the news. I told myself that I was “protecting my thought” by not fixating on the displays of hate.
Then I learned that a man had taken a swing at my aunt as she got off public transportation. My sister, who lives in a city where there have been many recent attacks, shared that she’s afraid to leave her apartment without another adult. It wasn’t until I heard my friends’ and family’s accounts that I realized I wasn’t protecting myself by turning away; I was choosing to stick my head in the sand.
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