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Opinion | Racist attacks must spur Asian-Americans to unite – and end timid stereotype
- The lack of a sense of cause or shared struggle is the main dynamic that has muted the many voices of US Asian communities, not shyness
- The worsening abuses that continue to this day should jolt Asian-Americans awake to the reality that to unite is the only way forward
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Last month, in the wake of the killing of six Asian women at a spa in Atlanta, Georgia, the United States woke up to the hostility Asian-Americans have lived with since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
As people grappled with the shocking surge in verbal and physical attacks targeting Asians, some major news outlets attributed the slow emergence of the worsening situation to the quiet nature of Asian people.
But that story was incomplete and inaccurate. What had prevented these incidents from surfacing faster was less about the shyness of Asians. What had been exposed was a fragmented Asian community. While Asians are looked upon as the same in the eyes of the West, they are not monolithic – far from it.
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Each Asian nation has its own unique heritage. Their people have different sets of struggles and at times have struggled against each other.
02:30
Chinese granny punched in the face in US, as Congress holds hearing on Asian hate crimes
Chinese granny punched in the face in US, as Congress holds hearing on Asian hate crimes
The Chinese and the Koreans felt strong resentment against Japan for its government’s mass killings during World War II. These memories are very much alive and continue to haunt trade, economic and interpersonal relationships.
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