AG Rob Bonta: Hate crimes against AAPI rose 107% in California

SCREEN CAPTURE / CBS

California's Attorney General Rob Bonta released a special report on hate crimes against AAPI.

California's Attorney General, a Filipino American, confessed that he fears for the safety of his mother when she goes out by herself.

Hate crimes against Asian Americans rose 107% according to a special report from his  office, said Attorney General Rob Bonta at a Wednesday press conference held in Oakland's Chinatown, where a number of attacks against AAPI elderly have occurred.

“For too many, 2020 wasn’t just about a deadly virus, it was about an epidemic of hate,” said Bonta in a prepared statement. “The facts here are clear: There was a surge in anti-Asian violence correlated with the words of leaders who sought to divide us when we were at our most vulnerable. But one of our most powerful weapons against hate is knowledge. When we’re armed with the facts, we put ourselves in a position to be our own best advocates; we put ourselves in a position to be able to fight for what is right.”

The special report on anti-Asian hate crimes during the pandemic provides a broad overview of the historical context for anti-Asian sentiment in California and a direct analysis of some of the key data captured in the most recent statewide report on hate crime. A copy of the full report is available here.

For instance, anti-Asian hate crime events increased by 107% from 43 in 2019 to 89 in 2020. The highest number of events were reported in March and April, during the height of pandemic-fueled, trumped-up rhetoric. This rhetoric was perpetuated at the highest levels of public office and built on a long history of harmful Asian stereotypes in the United States, cited the report

In fact, as early as the Gold Rush, Chinese residents, for example, were blamed for high unemployment, spreading disease, and “invading” the United States. 

Overall, hate crime in California surged 31% in 2020, fueled mainly by a big jump in crimes targeting Black people during a year that saw the worst racial strife in decades, according to an annual report released Wednesday.

Throughout the state, hate crimes increased from 1,015 to 1,330 last year, while the number of victims increased 23%, from 1,247 to 1,536. Black people account for 6.5% of the state’s population of nearly 40 million people but were victims in 30% of all hate crimes — 456 overall, up 87% from the previous year.

“What we see from these reports is what we have seen and felt all year — we are in the midst of a racial justice reckoning in this country. It’s multi-faceted, and it cannot be solved overnight.” Attorney General Rob Bonta said. 

Violent crime incidents driven by anti-Asian hate increased from 32 in 2019 to 72 in 2020, according to a companion report that aims to put that violence into modern and historical context dating to Gold Rush days of the mid-19th century and a history of harmful Asian stereotypes in the United States.

The number of hate incidents appear lower than the reports collected by the community-based organization Stop AAPI Hate. The over 6,000 reports gathered by Stop AAPI Hate include harassment, verbal attacks as well as physical assaults that may not meet the legal criteria to be classified as a hate crime.  Some of the incidents would be difficult to prove racial animus as a motive.

As of the 2020 U.S. Census, over 6 million Asian Americans -- or, 15.5% of the state's population -- reside in California, the largest Asian American community in the U.S.

California defines hate crimes as those targeting victims because of their race or ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation, gender or a disability. The definitions have been expanded at various times in recent years. Each hate crime event can include more than one related offense against more than one victim by more than one offender.

Bonta also unveiled new guidance, reports, and resources to help the public and law enforcement better understand and address hate crimes in California. 

At 1,330 bias events in 2020, overall hate crimes in the state are at their highest reported level in more than a decade. This significant increase in hate crime activity — impacting a wide range of Californians — was particularly pronounced for Asian Americans during periods in which harmful rhetoric from public figures sought to connect the Asian community with COVID-19. 

Despite these reported increases, the California Department of Justice recognizes that hate crimes in the state are generally underreported and that the data presented may not adequately reflect the actual number of hate crimes that occurred in the state. 

Recognizing the need for action at every level of government and society, Bonta is urging law enforcement and members of the public to take advantage of the wide array of information and resources being provided today so that all Californians can be part of the fight to tackle hate at its roots.

“We must stand against hate. My administration is taking aggressive, targeted action to support targeted Californians and prevent hate crimes, proposing an investment of $100 million to support survivors and another $200 million in community-based responses to violence,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “To our neighbors who have been exposed to these unspeakable acts, know that we have your back and will use the tools at our disposal to increase safety. We will work to promote diversity and inclusion, and ensure the safety of all Californians.”

"One of our most powerful weapons against hate is knowledge," Bonta said. "Ultimately, it's going to take building bridges to make that difference, to ensure every community in the state feels welcome."

As part of Wednesday’s expansive effort to increase access to information and resources around hate crime in California, Attorney General Bonta is issuing: 

• The special report documenting an alarming 107% increase in anti-Asian hate crimes in 2020; 
• the full 2020 hate crimes report; 
• a new information bulletin to law enforcement agencies across the state that provides a critical overview on laws and penalties related to hate crimes; 
• new guidance for prosecutors on best practices and resources for combating hate crimes at every level of enforcement;
• updated brochures in 25 languages to help victims and members of the public directly secure assistance; and
• new and updated dashboards on the OpenJustice data portal exploring hate crimes in general and by bias motivation.

The 2020 hate crimes report presents statistics on hate crime events, hate crime offenses, victims of hate crimes, and suspects of hate crimes. The report also provides statistics reported by district and elected city attorneys on the number of hate crime cases referred to prosecutors, the number of cases filed in court, and the disposition of those cases. The report does not include data on hate crime incidents. 

Some of the other key findings in the latest report include:

• Overall, hate crime events increased 31% from 1,015 in 2019 to 1,330 in 2020;
• Anti-Black bias events were the most prevalent, increasing 87% from 243 in 2019 to 456 in 2020;
• Anti-white bias events also increased from 39 in 2019 to 82 in 2020;
• Hate crime events motivated by religion decreased 13.5%, with anti-Jewish events falling 18.4% from 141 in 2019 to 115 in 2020;
• Hate crime events involving sexual orientation also fell 12% from 233 in 2019 to 205 in 2020; and
• Of the 108 cases filed for prosecution with a disposition available for this report, 42.6% were hate crime convictions, 45.4% were other convictions, and 12% did not result in any conviction.

Law Enforcement Bulletin and Prosecutor Guidance

The new law enforcement bulletin and guidance for prosecutors both work to ensure state and local law enforcement officials across California have the necessary information and tools to continue to respond appropriately and swiftly to hate crime activity in the state. Together, the guidance and bulletin work to, among other things, help law enforcement:

• Properly identify and investigate hate crimes;
• Ensure fair and uniform application of hate crime laws;
• Increase the success of prosecutions by ensuring more immediate and consistent contact with victims and affected communities; and
• Identify alternative forms of sentencing or restorative justice approaches to hate crime prosecutions.

Crimes motivated by hate are not just attacks on individual people — they are attacks on our communities and the entire state, the report states. 

A copy of the hate crimes report is available here.

A copy of the law enforcement bulletin is available here. 

A copy of the guidance for prosecutors is available here.

Members of the public can further explore the most recent hate crime data on OpenJustice here. The portal also contains an updated general dashboard on hate crimes and a brand-new dashboard organized by bias motivation type.

When Bonta was appointed to the Attorney General's post by Gov. Newsom earlier this year, he vowed to make hate crimes a priority of his office.

"Ultimately, it’s going to take building bridges to help make a difference," said Bonta. "It’s going to take harnessing the resources at our disposal to ensure every community across the state feels safe and welcome. I urge law enforcement and all Californians to make use of the tools being provided today. Together, we can tackle hate in all its forms.”

Breaking Barriers: Trans Filipino American crowned Miss Nevada USA

Miss Nevada USA, Kataluna Enriquez.

When Kataluna Enriquez was crowned as Miss Nevada USA last Sunday, she made history in more ways than one. Not only was she the first Filipino American to win the title, but she is also the first transgender woman to win the crown.

The 27-year-old beauty queen will also become the first transgender woman to compete in the 2021 Miss USA pageant.

After winning the Nevada pageant, the Las Vegas resident posted on social media: "Huge thank you to everyone who supported me from day one," she wrote. "My community, you are always in my heart. My win is our win. We just made history. Happy pride."

Her victory won praise from the LGBTQ community.

"Kataluna Enriquez being crowned Miss Nevada is a huge win for trans visibility and sends a powerful, but simple message to the world: trans women are women," GLAAD's Head of Talent Anthony, Allen Ramos, said in a statement..

"I'm so proud of Kataluna's trailblazing win especially as a fellow trans Filipina sister," trans model and LGBTQ activist Geena Rocero shared in a statement with E! News. "This win will open doors for all pageant system to continuously advocate for the inclusion of trans women in all pageants not just in America but all over the world."

A 2011 graduate of San Leandro High School in the San Francisco Bay Area, Enriquez began her  modeling career the following year wining several pageants, including rMiss Hayward in the Miss California contest in 2020.

Prior to winning the Miss Nevada USA title, in May of 2021, she also won the crown for Miss Silver State USA.

"I wanted to share my story and present that I was more than just a body," Enriquez  said. "With pageantry, people think it is only about beauty. But it’s how you present yourself, what you advocate."

James Corden admits his mockery hurt Asian Americans, but still no apology

INSTAGRAM

Kim Saira, center, and supporters protest James Corden's 'Spill Your Guts' routine.

Don't underestimate the power of social media; just ask Jame Corden.

The host of The late Late Show is the latest to feel the wrath of Asian Americans fed up being the butt of comedians' jokes.

The usually affable  Corden thought it was acceptable to make fun of Asian food in a segment, "Spill Your Guts," but Kim Saira wasn't laughing. She used her Tic Tok account to express her displeasure.

"In the wake of the constant Asian hate crimes that have continuously been occurring, not only is this segment incredibly culturally offensive and insensitive, but it also encourages anti-Asian racism. So many Asian Americans are consistently bullied and mocked for their native foods, and this segment amplifies and encourages it," wrote Saira.

She started a Change.org petition demanding that Corden apologize and stop using the segment mocking Asian dishes. As of June 29, in three weeks the petition had collected about 50,000 signatures.

"The foods that are presented are meant to be 'gross,' as they are supposed to encourage the guest to answer his questions instead. However, many of the foods that he presents to his guests are actually from different Asian cultures. He's presented foods such as balut, century old eggs and chicken feet, and which are often regularly eaten by Asian people."

“During these segments, he’s openly called these foods ‘really disgusting,’ and ‘horrific,’” the petition read. “In the wake of the constant Asian hate crimes that have continuously been occurring, not only is this segment incredibly culturally offensive and insensitive, but it also encourages anti-Asian racism.”

“I noticed that one of the foods that he presented to someone was balut (a fertilized duck egg that is boiled and eaten from the shell), and balut is like, very specific to Filipino culture,” Saira said on the Today Show. “It’s a food that I have been eating whenever I go to the Philippines with my grandma and my cousins, so it’s a very sentimental food to me, and I noticed that he was presenting it to a guest and calling it gross.”

She started the petition because she was offended by Corden describing balut, a fertilized duck egg, a food that as a Filipino American associated with family and part of her culture.

"I wasn't mad about it, but I was more so confused," Saira, a 24-year-old Filipina and Chinese American activist, said. "I was just wondering why they used a food that was so sentimental to my culture."

As a guest on shock-jock Howard Stern's show and despite the host urging him to not give in to the complaints,  Corden announced that he is aware of the petition and that changes will occur so it would not be offensive.

“We heard that story, and the next time we do that bit we absolutely won’t involve or use any of those foods,” Corden said. “As you said at the start, our show is a show about joy and light and love, we don’t want to make a show to upset anybody.”

"In my opinion, it is an absolute non-apology, and no accountability was taken," Saira  said.

An unfortunate consequence of her crusade, Saira has been the target of online bullies, making fun of lack of a sense of humor and even threatening her life.

"In my petition, I have specifically asked for James Corden to publicly apologize on his show," she continued. "And the reason why I was really specific about that was that I think that it is imperative for his hundreds of thousands of viewers to understand the harm that mocking these foods, rooted in Asian cultures, has on Asian people who still eat them."

2021 OLYMPICS: Medals expected with first Hmong American gymnast in the U.S. women's team

TEAM USA

Olympian Sunisa Lee on the balance beam.

To no one's surprise, Simone Biles, a once-in-a-century athlete, dominated the gymnastic tryouts over the weekend, but coming in a strong second is the first Hmong American to make the U.S. Olympic team.

Sunisa Lee, 18, did well enough in all the events to raise the possibility of the American squad winning the gold and silver medals at the Tokyo Olympics next month with the gold, presumably going to Biles, the G.O.A.T. in women's gymnastics.

The University of Auburn-bound Lee locked up one of the two guaranteed spots for the team with her second-place finish in the two-day event. And it took an uncharacteristically off-night for Biles – with an error on uneven bars and a fall on balance beam -- for Lee to hold the advantage in those two events.

Besides being the first Hmong American to reach such prominence in the sport, the road to making the Olympic team has not been easy for Lee from St. Paul, Minnesota.

Lee’s life turned upside down right as her elite gymnastics career was taking off. Just days before heading to her first senior U.S. championships in 2019, Lee’s dad, John, became partially paralyzed after falling from a ladder. The Minnesota native decided to still compete, and all she did was finish as runner-up to Biles. 

Lee has since gone on to win a full slate of world championships medals — gold with the team, silver on floor, bronze on uneven bars — before claiming another runner-up finish at the U.S. championships earlier this month.

The journey to get here has come with more hardship, though. While John Lee has made progress in his recovery, an aunt the gymnast was close with died of COVID-19. Two weeks later, her uncle died too. This all came as the Lee was grappling with the reality that the Tokyo Games she’d been working toward had been pushed back a year. 

“You don't think something like this would ever happen to you,” the gymnast who goes by Suni told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “And when it did, it was like everything hit all at one time.”

RELATED: Korean American makes US Men's Gymnastic Team.

With her parents in the crowd at nationals and trials, Lee, 18, has looked the part of an Olympian. While recovering from an ankle injury earlier this year, Lee said she heard the whispers about whether she could be an all-arounder at the Olympics. So the future Auburn Tiger went out and posted the second best all-around scores at both nationals and the trials. 

While Lee could no doubt factor into the all-around in Tokyo, the event to really pay attention is the uneven bars, where she starts with a world-class 6.7 difficulty score and connects a seemingly never ending chain of skills like it’s no big deal. If she can hit that routine in Tokyo, Lee could come home with an individual gold medal along with the gold medal for the team competition, in which the U.S. is the favorite.

Besides Lee and Biles, the rest of the women's gymnastic squad were introduced following the conclusion of Sunday’s competition at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials in St. Louis. They also include Jordan Chiles and Grace McCallum. In addition, Jade Carey and MyKayla Skinner qualified for Tokyo as individuals.

TEAM USA

This year's women's gymnastic team might be better than the team that won the 2016 team title.

Waiting in the wings in case of injury or COVID-19 protocols, is Filipino American Emma Malabuyo, who was named one of the alternates. The UCLA-bound Texan finished in ninth place overall at the Trials. Her best events are vault, uneven bars and beam and her floor routine.

Chinese American Emily Lee, also competed at the Trials and finished 15th after she was unable to finish her final event due to an injury. 

Since winning the team silver medal at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, the U.S. women are undefeated in the Olympic and world championships team competitions, a combined seven victories. The winning streak goes even longer in the individual all-around, with a U.S. woman having won every Olympic gold medal since Carly Patterson in 2004, and 10 of the 12 world titles during that span.

Naomi Osaka, H.E.R, Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak win at BET awards

SCREEN CAPTURE

Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak perform "Leave the Door Open" at the BET Awards.

The B.E.T. awards celebrates Black excellence in the entertainment world but AAPI artists made their presence felt.

H.E.R. was named the Best Female R&B/Pop Artist, the duo of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak as Silk Sonic was named Best Group and tennis player Naomi Osaka was named Sportswoman of the Year.

H.E.R. celebrated her 24th birthday with some of the biggest names in show business. She gave a show-stopping performance just before being named the Best Female R&B/Pop Artist.H.E.R., the Black/Filipino American whose real name is Gabrielle Sarmiento Wilson, took the stage for another stunning performance at the BET Awards on Sunday night.

The Oscar winner performed her song, "We Made It," and showed off her talents as a singer and musician as she opened her performance at the drums high above the rafters playing the drums. When the platform descended down, she switched to her trademark electric guitar.

Prior to the awards show, H.E.R. said, "We're celebrating our culture. We're celebrating Black women. We're also celebrating my birthday so it is a very big day," she said, adding that she plans to "kill the stage is what I'm going to do for my birthday." 

"I'm so excited to see all the faces and it just feels warm, that's what it feels like," H.E.R. said. She added that after the show, her friends and family are going continue celebrating her birthday.  "We're all going to go back to the house and eat -- that's what we doing."

Silk Sonic gave a well-received performance also. The duo of Mars and Henson presented their hit 70s-style R&B single "Leave The Door Open.

2021 OLYMPICS: America is going to love Korean American gymnast Yul Moldauer

When Yul Moldauer competes in the Olympics next month, he might very well recall the woman in the white Suburban. As a member of the Men's Gymnastics Team, he'll be representing her.

The driver of the white Suburban recently pulled up beside him, looked at him and yelled, “Go back to China.”

The incident is one of the thousands of anti-Asian attacks that have arisen since the pandemic hit the United States.

“It shouldn’t be normal,” Moldauer told The Oklahoman. “Asian Americans shouldn’t have to go through the name calling, the stereotypes and the jokes.”

Moldauer, along with teammates Brody Malone, Sam Mikulak and Shane Wiskus, will represent the U.S. at the Olympics in Japan that starts July 23. Alec Yoder will join them in Tokyo as an individual competitor. The U.S. will also bring five alternates, an increased number due to COVID-19 precautions.

Moldauer finished with a score of 168.600 at the Olympic trials held Saturday in St. Louis. He punched his ticket to Tokyo with a second-place finish overall and top-three finishes in parallel bars, pommel horse, floor exercise and still rings.

Moldauer led the University of Oklahoma to three straight NCAA titles and won seven individual titles of his own during his collegiate career. He was also the 2017 U.S. national champion. Although he graduated in 2019, he continued to train inOklahoma with hopes of making the Olympics in 2020. The coronavirus pandemic delayed his dream until this year.

Yul Moldauer competes on the still rings.

“Looking back, I definitely went through discrimination that I didn’t know was discrimination at the time,” Moldauer said in an interview on the Today Show. “It wasn’t like every day, but it was like, ‘You’re only good at gymnastics because you’re Asian,’ because at the time people thought Asians had the best body types for gymnastics.

“There were times I didn’t really understand discrimination. But at the same time, if I wasn’t a gymnast and was an average Asian American, I might have seen the discrimination more. Gymnastics has given me a better opportunity, and people can see something in my life that isn’t just related to the color of my skin.”

Moldauer was adopted from South Korea as a baby boy by Peter and Orsa Moldauer, and grew up on their farm outside Fort Collins, Colorado.

The Moldauers renamed their son, Yul Kyung Tae Moldauer, named after the actor Yul Brynner because her new baby boy had almost no hair.

“I couldn’t be more blessed,” Moldauer said in a 2019 article in The Oklahoman. “I think, ‘What if I didn’t get adopted? What if I didn’t do gymnastics? What would my life look like?’

US GYMNASTICS

From left: Brody Malone, Sam Mikulak, Yul Moldauer, Shane Wiskus and Alec Yoder pose for a
photo after being named to the U.S. Olympic Team on June 26 in St. Louis.

Today's Doodle spotlights Olympic gold medal weightlifter Tommy Kono

With the Olympics just under a month away, Google has replaced its homepage logo with a Doodle celebrating Tommy Kono, a Japanese American weightlifter and Olympic gold medalist.

Tamio “Tommy” Kono was born on June 27, 1930 — 91 years ago, today — in Sacramento, California. In 1942, at the age of 12, Tommy and his family, all being of Japanese descent, were moved to one of the United States’ Japanese internment camps.

While living there, Kono’s neighbors introduced him to the sport of weightlifting. From then on, he put his efforts into athletics, at least in part as a way to strengthen his body to compensate for his childhood asthma.

In the years after World War II, Tommy Kono began competing in weightlifting competitions, overcoming discrimination to become a critical member of the U.S. national weightlifting team by 1952. In both 1952 and 1956, Kono earned a gold medal for the United States in the Summer Olympics.

During his weightlifting career, Tommy Kono set a total of 26 world records. This fact is made even more impressive by the fact that he set records across four different weight classes, something that no other weightlifter has accomplished. 

Hand-in-hand with his weightlifting, Tommy Kono was also an accomplished bodybuilder, winning the title of Mr. Universe in 1954, 1955, 1957, and 1961.

Kono’s career came to an unexpected end in 1964, when he suffered a knee injury that prevented him from competing in that year’s Olympic Games. However, he passed on his insights to rising athletes as a coach to various Olympic teams through 1976. For his contributions to the sport — including the popularization of elbow and knee bands — Tommy Kono was inducted into the Weightlifting Hall of Fame in 1993.

RELATED: Google Doodle fetes Olympic diver Victoria Manolo Draves

The Doodle’s artist, Shanti Rittgers had this to say about this project:

"Although my main passion pursuit in life has been art, physical activity and sport have always been quiet passions that have rescued me from mentally and emotionally dark times. So when I started researching Mr. Kono's story and learned he began weight lifting as an asthmatic child in a U.S. internment camp, I felt an instant wave of awe ands personal connection to his journey. The more I learned about him, saw his photos, and listened to second-hand interviews, the more he grew in my mind as someone who always pushed himself to be his best, and wanted to be a positive light to others. He was like a shining star."

In today’s animated Google Doodle, Tommy Kono is depicted in action. More specifically, he performs the “clean and jerk” — a move that involves lifting a barbell and holding it directly overhead with straight arms and legs. To make it a proper Google Doodle, each side of the barbell has three weight plates, appropriately colored and labeled with a letter of “Google.”

"My father would always say weightlifting was 30% physical and 70% mental and his ability to stay focused with a positive mental attitude was his greatest strength throughout his weightlifting career," said his son in a statement to Google.  "He always encouraged positivity and growth and used phrases he felt would help you through life.  “Do what you should before you do what you want” was one of his sayings. That holds true for me still today."

Campaign launched to name a U.S. Navy ship after Filipino American sailor

American hero Telesforo Trinidad

A campaign has been launched to name a U.S. Navy ship after a Filipino American sailor who awarded the Medal of Honor. 

"I don't believe it's a long shot at all" it may be a long timeline, but we're hoping it's not," said retired Navy Capt. Ron Ravelo and chair of the campaign. "We're going to be making Navy ships into the foreseeable future, and there's no reason one of those can't bear the name of Telesforo Trinidad.'' 

Trinidad, born in 1890, enlisted in 1910 in the Insular Force established by then-President William McKinley and served in both world wars. 

Like many young men in the Philippines escaping poverty or lured by a sense adventure, joined the U.S. Navy after the U.S. acquired the Philippines as a colony after the U.S. won the Spanish American War.

The young Trinidad was so eager to join the U.S. Navy that he stowed away on a lifeboat from his home island of Panay to the main island to enlist, said grandson Rene Trinidad, who lives in California.

In 1915, while on patrol on the USS San Diego, he risked his life and suffered burns to rescue two crewmates when boilers exploded, killing nine. He received the medal that year, at a time when the honor could be awarded for noncombat valor.

Trinidad died in 1968 at the age of 77.

Supporters say naming a ship for Telesforo Trinidad would honor not just the only Asian American in the U.S. Navy granted the nation's highest award for valor, but the tens of thousands of Filipinos and Americans of Filipino descent who have served in the U.S. Navy since the Philippines was a colony of the United States.

The USS Rizal

The Navy had one other ship named after a Filipino. The USS Rizal, named after Philippine national hero Jose Rizal, was donated to the U.S. Navy by the colonial government of the Philippines on 1919. Built in San Francisco, the minesweeper's home port was Manila before being decommissioned in Mare Island Ship Yard in Vallejo, Calif. and then turned into scrap metal in 1932.

Naming a ship after Telesforo Trinidad would be reflect the Navy's commitment to "diversity, equality and inclusion during this time of national racial tensions and unwarranted violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders,” said Democratic U.S. Rep. Sara Jacobs of California, in a May letter to Thomas Harker, acting secretary of the Navy.

"The bottom line is that Filipinos be recognized for their contribution to the United States, and that every Filipino should be proud of that as well,'' said grandson Rene Trinidad.

Documentary 'Asian Americans' wins Peabody Award

The 5-episode documentary Asian Americans  is a winner of the 2021 Peabody Awards, one of most prestigious honors in broadcast journalism.

“History and solidarity were always central concepts of the Asian Americans. We wanted to tell our own story within the context of race and justice in the U.S. Not the story of the Model Minority or the Perpetual Foreigner,” says series producer Renee Tajima-Peña. 

The critically acclaimed PBS documentary series Asian Americans was premiered a year ago on PBS. It is a production of WETA Washington, DC and the Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) for PBS

“Being selected for a Peabody Award is a tremendous honor for CAAM and an acknowledgement of our four decades of work to bring Asian American stories to the broadest possible audience,” says CAAM Director of Programs Donald Young, who is also one of the executive producers of Asian Americans. 

“Respected for its integrity and revered for its standards of excellence, the Peabody Awards elevate stories that defend the public interest, encourage empathy with others, and teach us to expand our understanding of the world around us--all goals that we here at CAAM value,” he said.

The expansive five-part series chronicles over 250 years of Asian American experiences, which are deeply intertwined with United States history at large. 

“One thing that’s really important about the team that came together to make Asian Americans is that everyone has a long track record of being invested in the Asian American story. And we could locate our own family stories in the series. We figured out that Don’s family has been here the longest, back to the early Chinese migration in the 1800s,” says Tajima-Peña. “My grandparents came in the early 1900s—sugar cane workers, picture brides, all of whom had no pathway to citizenship for 50 years in America. Jean Tsien, Grace Lee and Geeta Gandbhir could trace their families’ arrivals to the 1965 immigration reforms. S. Leo Chiang was a parachute kid. Duc Nguyen, one of our archivists, arrived as a refugee from Vietnam.”

Asian Americans is one of the 30 works cited this year. The Peabody 30 are the best of over 1,300 entries submitted from television, podcasts/radio and the web in entertainment, news, documentary, arts, children’s/youth, public service and multimedia programming.

For the complete list of Peabody awardees, click here.

Asian Americans, narrated by Daniel Dae Kim and Tamlyn Tomita, chronicles the role of Asian Americans who did the most dangerous work of tunneling through the Sierras to build the Transcontinental Railroad, petitioned the Supreme Court to grant birthright citizenship, and challenged racial school segregation. And this history continued through the 20th century and into the 21st century. 

“Asian Americans continued to fight for justice in the courts, at the ballot box, in the streets, the fields, on campuses and in the culture. We’re fighting today. That’s the story we wanted to tell.”

Sesame Street: helps start conversations with your kids about anti-Asian bullying

SESAME STREET

'Sesame Street's' Wes and Alan help boost Analyn's spirits after she was teased about her eyes.

With the surge of attacks against Asian Americans since the start of the pandemic, AAPI parents have had the difficult task of explaining racism to their children.

Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit educational organization behind "Sesame Street," recently released a video focused on the experiences of Asian American children as part of an ongoing initiative to help families have honest conversations about race.

In the segment “Proud of Your Eyes,” the characters Wes and Alan help their friend Analyn, who is Filipino American, after she says she was teased about the shape of her eyes. 

They sing a song together about how their eyes are beautiful and how eyes can tell the story of their family. The video is part of Sesame Workshop's program "The ABCs of Racial Literacy," which provides an educational curriculum on racial justice for young children.

The song includes lyrics such as, “Your eyes tell the story of your family. They show where you came from, and how you came to be. The color, the shape and the size should always make you proud of your eyes.”

"Having open conversations with children about race and racism is critical, not only for building understanding and empathy, but also for beginning the healing process for children who experience racism," say Anita Gundanna and Vanessa Leung, Co-Executive Directors of Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF), who served as advisors on the new resources. 

“The reality is that many children grow up experiencing racism, including Asian American children who for years have reported high levels of racial harassment—a number exacerbated by heightened xenophobia and scapegoating during the COVID-19 pandemic,"they said in a statement.

Alan Muraoka, the Japanese American actor who has played Alan, the owner of Hooper’s Store, on Sesame Street since 1998, assisted in creating storylines centered around diversity and discrimination on the show. Last year, he co-directed a special on racism entitled “The Power of We.”

“To be able to see so many different types of people represented is super important," Muraoka said in an interview with NBC's Today show in 2019. “So for me, being Japanese American, you know, to be sort of the Asian American representation on the show is so important, and I've had so many Asian American parents come up and say how much that meant to them.”

With a long history of building trust with families, Sesame Workshop is the ideal organization to engage parents and caregivers in critical conversations with their little ones, help families cope with the harms of racism, and help build solidarity among communities.”

Besides this video, Sesame Workshop also released online articles, guides and activities to help families continue the conversation about combating racism. The new resources were created with guidance from the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families along with several other racial equity groups.

"Sesame Workshop has always stood for diversity, inclusion, equity, and kindness. As a trusted source for families, we have a responsibility to speak out for racial justice and empower families to have conversations about race and identity with their children at a young age,” said Kay Wilson Stallings, Executive Vice President of Creative and Production, Sesame Workshop. 

“The work to dismantle racism begins by helping children understand what racism is and how it hurts and impacts people. Sadly, today’s announcement comes at a time of racial and social discord when many families are in need of support in talking to their children about racism. We’re proud to reaffirm our Coming Together commitment to racial justice, which will be woven into new Sesame Workshop content for years to come.”

Who is speaking for you in Congress? Not many, it turns out

CAPAC

Most of the 18 elected AAPI members of Congress and some associate members of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus are in this picture taken from the CAPAC webpage.

ANALYSIS

A recent study of Congress members' emails gives a broad picture of how much  AAPI interests are being mentioned or discussed in the electronic halls of Congress.

The results from a Pew Research Center analysis give some indication of which ethnic groups get the attention of the lawmakers. Not surprisingly, the Congressmembers seem to demonstrate a proclivity towards the issues affecting their own ethnic group. 

It is not  surprising that White concerns are overwhelmingly addressed because77% of the 535 members of the House and Senate are white. (That's a matter that should be a  topic for another column.) The Pew study finds that AAPI members of Congress, only 3% of the lawmakers, also follow the same tendency of paying attention to matters concerning their own particular ethnic group.

The four Korean American members of Congress make up 22% of the AAPI lawmakers. That could explain that why Korean American matters are mentioned in 23% of AAPI social media postings despite making only 8% of the AAPI population.

The apparent favoritism may be because of human nature: the tendency to pay attention to groups you are familiar with, give access to, or identify with and not a bias towards other ethnicities.

In contrast, Rep. Bobby Scott -- and in 2018-2020, TJ Cox, a California Democrat --  were the only members of Congress of Filipino descent. Social media postings of Filipino American issues actually dropped during the period of study from 10% to 7% even though Filipino Americans account for 18% of the AAPI population, the third largest group under the AAPI umbrella designation. 

After Cox's narrow defeat in 2020, that leaves Scott as the only remaining Congressmember with Filipino American heritage. Scott, who also has African American lineage, represents a diverse district with many competing interest groups. It is likely that Filipino American interests such as whittling down the long waiting list of Filipinos seeking U.S. visas, or naming a Navy ship after a Filipino American medal of honor winner, will get less attention in the 117th Congress.

That doesn't necessarily mean Filipino Americans are lacking champions in Congress. Sen. Hirano has championed the plight of Filipino WWII veterans for years and, thankfully, members of CAPAC seem to rally around AAPI causes no matter what ethnic group they benefit.

Following is Pew's a portion of the report on the social media tendencies of Congressmembers:

"Six major origin groups – Chinese, Indian, Filipino, Vietnamese, Korean and Japanese Americans – comprise the vast majority of Asians in the United States. And these same six groups also account for the overwhelming majority of references to Asian American origin groups by lawmakers on social media.

"But certain origin groups are mentioned disproportionately by lawmakers on social media relative to their share of the Asian American population. In particular, Japanese and Korean Americans have been overrepresented by this metric.

"From Jan. 1. 2016, to April 5, 2021, Japanese Americans were mentioned in 20% of posts that referenced Asian American origin groups, more than three times their share of the Asian American population (6%). And references to Korean Americans accounted for 23% of lawmaker mentions of Asian American origin groups, despite this group making up just 8% of the Asian American population.

"Notably, Korean and Japanese Americans are overrepresented in Congress itself in relation to their respective population sizes. Of the 24 Asian or Pacific Islander members who served over the entire time period, 10 of them are of either Korean or Japanese descent. And when Asian American lawmakers mention specific origin groups in their posts, they tend to reference their own more than any other.

"Some origin groups have grown more or less prominent in lawmaker mentions over time. Dating back to 2016, mentions of Chinese Americans have accounted for 20% of lawmaker mentions of Asian origin groups – a figure that is roughly in line with their share of the population. But in 2020 and 2021, mentions of Chinese Americans have made up nearly one-third (34%) of lawmaker origin group references. Conversely, since 2020 mentions of Indian Americans have made up a smaller share of lawmaker references to Asian origin groups than in the four years prior."

Following is the ethnic breakdown of AAPI voting members of Congress. There are 21 Members (16 Representatives, 2 Senators and 3 non-voting Delegates representing Guam, American Samoa and Northern Marianas) who are Asian Americans or Pacific Islander Americans. Except for California's Young Kim and Michelle Steele, they are all Democrats. 

• Chinese: Judy Chu, CA; *Grace Meng, NY; Ted Lieu, CA.
• Filipino: Bobby Scott, VA.
• Indian: Ami Bera, CA; Pramila Jayapal, WA; Raja  Krishnamoorthi, Ill; and Ro Khanna, CA.
• Japanese: Senator Mazie Hirano, HI; Doris Matsui, CA; and Mark Tanaka, CA
• Korean: Young Kim, CA; Andrew Kim, NJ; Yvonne Steele, CA and Marilyn Strickland, WA. 
• Native Hawaiian: Kai Kahele, HI.
• Thai: Sen. Tammy Duckwork, Ill.
• Vietnamese: Stephanie Murphy, FL.

* Meng's parents are from Taiwan, technically part of the People's Republic of China.

The Pew study also shows that Congress' social media postings increase every year during May, which is Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

During the era of the pandemic, AAPI mentions spiked dramatically in 2020 and continues into 2021, the result of the surge of acts of hate and violence directed against Asian Americans that has spurred a new era of AAPI activism and awareness as all sectors -- political, educational, religious, business, labor and entertainment -- speaking out against the racist attacks coming predominantly from Whites.

With only 18 members of Congress, or 3% of the members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, it is clear that AAPIs, 23 million strong, according to the Census, needs more representation.

There are signs that the Congressional representation will change in the coming elections resulting in more conversations -- electronic and in person -- about AAPI concerns will occur.

The AAPI community, the majority of whom are first-generation immigrants, will only grow in influence as they become naturalized and become citizen activists. The results of the 2018 Midterms and 2020 presidential elections demonstrate that AAPI voters can influence outcomes. 

A slate of AAPI politicians gaining experience and expertise in the local and state legislatures has been steadily growing providing a bench of leadership who could take the next step in their political careers.

The silver lining of the current pandemic of hate has given a renewed interest in activism in the AAPI communities, especially among the Gen Z and Millennial generations, who are doing their best to destroy the model minority myth that has kept many preceding generations in line. 

Finally, the long AAPI history of fighting injustices and the heroes who dared stand up against oppression and speak out against inequality are being spotlighted giving lies to the stereotype that AAPI -- no matter the ethnicity -- won't rock the boat. Hopefully, the many activists, celebrities, business people, journalists and politicians who have dared to step into the public square, pick up a megaphone, question an employer, or tap "send" on a keyboard, will produce a new generation of leaders unhampered by the stereotypes of the past.  

Editor's Caution: This is an opinion piece. Readers are encouraged to seek out multiple sources of information to form their own opinions.

Kamala Harris: 'We will continue the fight to strengthen the right to vote'

Vice President Kamala Harris

Vice President Kamala Harris said the Biden administration will redouble its efforts to make sure the right to vote is available to every citizen after Republican senators Tuesday blocked the voting rights bill, the For the People Act.

"When we cast a ballot, we not only decide our leaders. We determine our future," said Harris, the first Vice President of Asian American heritage. 

The GOP is trying to place restrictions on voting in two dozen states. Republicans claim they are trying to prevent voter fraud, an allegation that nonpartisan investigations have concluded to be be nonexistent.

"There is no evidence presented at this time to prove either significant acts of fraud or that an organized, wide-scale effort to commit fraudulent activity was perpetrated in order to subvert the will of Michigan voters," the GOP-dominated Michigan Senate Oversight Committee said in a report released Wednesday.

Democrats responded to the GOP efforts with the For the People Act trying to pass federal voting reform legislation. 

With the defeat of the For the People Act in the Senate, Democrats are now looking to push for the passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Act, which would revive the 1965 Voting Rights Act, which was severely weakened by the conservative Supreme Court.

The rest of her statement follows:

"The right to vote is fundamental. It gives Americans a voice in what happens in our nation—whether that is in our economy or our national security, our education system or our healthcare system. When more people have a voice, our democracy becomes more representative, and our nation becomes stronger.

"Today, across our nation, we are witnessing unprecedented attacks on voting rights. There are unjust bills in dozens of state legislatures that would limit early voting and vote by mail and otherwise make it harder for the American people to vote. Make no mistake: While these attacks are meant to silence some Americans, the impact is felt by all Americans.

"At this critical moment, the United States Senate had a critical opportunity to make voting more accessible nationwide. The For The People Act has the broad support of the American people. Yet, as Senate Democrats united around the legislation, this afternoon, Senate Republicans voted against advancing it.

"The President and I are undeterred, and I know the American people are as well. Like generations before, we will not give up, we will not give in, and we will continue the fight to strengthen the right to vote. We will fortify and expand the nationwide coalition on voting rights, and promote voter engagement and registration nationwide. We will lift up leaders in the states who are working to stop anti-voter legislation, and work with leaders in Congress to advance federal legislation that will strengthen voting rights.

"I want to be clear that our Administration remains determined to work with Congress to pass the For The People Act, and we will keep working with Congress to pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.

"Here is the bottom line: Our democracy is stronger when everyone participates—and it is weaker when people are denied meaningful access to participation. And that is why the right to vote is neither Democratic nor Republican. The right to vote is an American right.

"It is our duty, at every opportunity, to protect and strengthen the right to vote.