Breaking the Silence: Business leaders pledge millions to the fight against anti-Asian bigotry

A coalition of Asian American business leaders have made it clear that they will no longer be silent against the racism facing AAPI communities.

Almost 1,000 AAPI business executives from across the country added their voices and their pocketbooks against the attacks targeting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders with a full page ad in the Wall Street Journal Wednesday, March 31, by pledging to donate $10 million to organizations fighting against the anti-Asian violence.

Part of the "open letter" published in the WSJ states:

"We, the Asian American business leaders of America, are tired, angry and afraid — and not for the first time. We are tired of being treated as less than American, subject to harassment and now, every day, we read about another member of our community being physically attacked — simply for being Asian. We are afraid for the safety of our loved ones. We are angry that our families can no longer go outside in their own neighborhoods where they have lived for decades because it may not be safe. 

"We have given a lot to this country where we were born or to which we immigrated. Our community includes your cashiers, your teachers, your cooks, your doctors, your dry cleaners, your colleagues, your neighbors, your friends. We cut your nails. We write your code. We, together, have launched rovers to Mars and back. Many of us have created jobs for hundreds of thousands of Americans. We choose to make America our home and we strive every day to make America better — just like you.

"We don’t deserve to live in fear in our own country."  

The violence against AAPI communities has been growing for over a year since the Trump administration began blaming the coronavirus to China, calling it the China Virus, the Wuhan Virus and the Kung Flu.

By insisting on associated the virus to China, Trump has successfully playing to the country's centuries-old fear of Asians by blaming Asians for the pandemic that has disrupted the economy.

The mass shooting in Georgia that killed eight people, six of whom were Asian women, sparked nationwide demonstrations condemning the anti-Asian attacks and prompted statements and actions by the business community.

Zoom CEO Eric Yuan, YouTube cofounder Steve Chen,  DoorDash founder Tony Xu, OpenTable CEO Debby Soo and Care.com founder Sheila Marcelo are among the business leaders who have signed onto the open letter.

Other high-profile signatories include Facebook vice president of product George Lee, Boxed CEO Chieh Huang, Peloton Interactive co-founders Yony Feng and Hisao Kushi, and Alfred Lin, partner at Sequoia Capital.

“As a proud Asian American, it is disheartening to see the hatred and violence against our community,” Zoom’s Yuan told CNBC in a statement. “Racism in any form is unacceptable, and I feel strongly it is important to lend my voice and stand up with my fellow colleagues, friends and family who are suffering during this time.”

Since the ad appeared two days ago, over 2,800 AAPI business leaders and their allies have joined the pledge.

Part of the commitment the coalitions is asking includes "creating and funding AAPI employee resource groups to ensure Asian employees, especially women who bear the brunt of the harassment, have a safe space to tell their stories, receive support and report discrimination without fear of retaliation" and a commitment "to reporting out on diversity of all groups and to redefine Asian Americans as a group worth representation at all levels of the organization."

$1.25 BILLION INITIATIVE FROM BANK OF AMERICA

Prompted by the attacks against the AAPI communities, has caused an awakening of the business community to the scourge of racial discrimination has prompted other big corporations to create their own initiatives.  The giant banking behemoth, Bank of America, committed $1-billion over a four-year period to fight racial inequities. Since the rise in anti-Asian violence, the bank has extended the initial initiative to a fifth year and added $250 million.

“The urgency we feel to address long-standing issues of inclusion and racial inequality has only increased following the attacks and hate speech directed at Asian people over the last year,” said Bank of America Chairman and CEO Brian Moynihan. “Across the public and private sectors, it is clear that we must do more – to take action, help others convene, and serve as a catalyst for a broad-based, collective response to the critical issues affecting our nation.”

“The urgency we feel to address long-standing issues of inclusion and racial inequality has only increased following the attacks and hate speech directed at Asian people over the last year,” added Brian Moynihan.

Immediate actions taken to help accelerate and expand pre-existing work include:

• A grant to the Asian Americans Advancing Justice (Advancing Justice) organization to advance the nonprofit’s work to promote civil rights, bystander intervention, in-language advocacy, social services assistance and legal support. This funding supports five Asian Americans Advancing Justice affiliates based in Atlanta, Washington, D.C., Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago.
• The addition of Connie Chung Joe, chief executive officer of Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles, to serve as a member of Bank of America’s National Community Advisory Council (NCAC), in support of ongoing dialogue and stakeholder engagement with the Asian community in the U.S., and on broad issues of gender and racial equality. Members of the NCAC engage with leaders on Bank of America’s business policies, practices and products in support of employees, clients and local communities.
• Additional support for the National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community Development (National CAPACD) and The Leadership Conference Education Fund as the two organizations work to advance local community advocacy, training, and resources through community-based efforts.
• Increased philanthropic support through Bank of America’s employee matching gift program. Bank of America employees can double their charitable donations to these three nonprofits and select others; the company’s matching gift minimum has been lowered to $1 for the next 90 days, to expand the impact of their support to the Asian community in the U.S.

“The rising number of attacks against Asian people, including the tragic shootings in Atlanta recently, have served as a stark reminder that we must stand united against discrimination, hate speech and violence,” said Thong Nguyen, vice chairman at Bank of America. “We will not tolerate acts of racism in any form. Today’s commitment builds upon Bank of America’s many years of work in support of inclusion and racial equality.”

SONY'S $100 MILLION RACIAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE

In June 2020, Sony Music Group led to the establishment of a $100 millionGlobal Social Justice Fund with the full support of all Sony Group companies. This fund is used to support initiatives that promote social justice, anti-racism initiatives and to foster diversity, equity and inclusion both inside and outside of the company around the world.

This past week, Sony announced it has made donations to Asian Americans Advancing Justice (AAJC) and Asian American Legal and Education Fund (AALDEF).

"Racial injustice is a global issue that affects us all," said Kenichiro Yoshida, Chairman, President and CEO, Sony Corporation. "Today I join together with the leaders of Sony's businesses in the U.S. to denounce the appalling violence against the Asian American community. 

"As a company that cherishes diversity as one of our core values, we are committed to the human rights of all people. Sony places great importance on treating everyone with dignity and respect, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, age, religious beliefs or physical ability," said Yoshida. "I stand shoulder to shoulder with our group leaders to condemn this ongoing violence and discrimination."

UC nurses angry that they are targets of anti-Asian hate while they care for Covid-19 patients

NNU/CNA GRAPHIC

Asian American and Pacific Islander nurses af the University of California's five  medical centers are angry that as they care for COVID-19 patients, at the same time, they are being attacked by racists blaming them for the pandemic.

UC registered nurses are outraged by the ongoing racist and xenophobic attacks against Asians and call for solidarity with Asian communities and a public commitment to solutions that work toward ending structural racism and promoting social equity and healing, announced California Nurses Association/National Nurses United (CNA/NNU) last week.

UC nurses are speaking out across the state to condemn the ongoing xenophobic attacks against Asian communities,” said Dahlia Tayag, RN at UC San Diego. “Physical safety is critical to having a healthy community. Asians are being attacked in California and throughout the country. We must unite to challenge anti-Asian violence, harassment, and racism.”

RNs at the medical centers at UC Davis, UC San Francisco, UC Los Angeles, UC Irvine, and UC San Diego are available for interviews today.

The rise of anti-Asian hate incidents during the pandemic is appalling for nurses, many of whom are of Asian descent. As members of the Asian communities, they experience structural racism firsthand. For example, while nurses of Filipino descent represent 4 percent of all U.S. registered nurses, they have disproportionately suffered more than a quarter of Covid-19 RN deaths, according to a March 2021 NNU report.

“CNA/NNU nurses continue to be on the front lines of health care fights but we also continue to fight against racism, a public health crisis,” said Rosa Villarroel, RN at UCSF Mission Bay. “We support Asian communities, the workers in the hospital and the communities we serve. We want to let Asian communities know we see and hear their pain. As a Latinx/Indigenous woman I am no stranger to the traumatic effects of racism but together we can all stand up, speak out, and fight against two public health crises: Covid and racism.”

Anti-Asian sentiment spiked across the country at the onset of the pandemic in 2020, spurred by those who promote conspiracy theories and xenophobia, and we are now seeing a disturbing resurgence. Racial violence and harassment targeting these communities has skyrocketed in recent weeks, striking some of the most vulnerable among us – seniors in the Bay Area. Tragically, an 84-year-old Thai man was fatally attacked in San Francisco and a 91-year-old man sustained grave injuries from an attack in Oakland’s Chinatown.

#StopAAPIhate, a community-based organization collecting reports of anti-Asian incidents, reports that over 500 attacks nationwide in the first two months of 2021. In the year of the pandemic, from March 2020 to March 2021, there have been over 3800 hate attacks against AAPI, reports the CBO.

“We are furious that Asian communities are being attacked and harassed,” said Melissa Johnson-Camacho, RN at UC Davis. “As nurses working in a women-dominated profession, we are especially aware of violence against women. More than two-thirds of the incidents reported to Stop AAPI Hate were reported by women. We must fight structural racism and sexism and stop the violence and harassment.”

“We care for our patients and we care for our communities,” said Fong Chuu, RN at UCLA. “As nurses we value life. The massacre of six Asian women was a horrific tragedy. The women were targeted because their lives were not valued. An attack on our Asian neighbors and communities is an assault on us all, and we have an obligation as a society to condemn and prevent it.”

“We are confronting the xenophobic legacy of former President Trump,” said Marlene Tucay, RN at UC Irvine. “His labeling of the pandemic as the ‘China virus’ has led to this increase in racist attacks against Asian communities. These racist attacks are part of the growing public health crisis in our country that has been exacerbated by the pandemic. Covid-19 has had a disproportionate impact on communities of color. As nurses, we know that working to achieve social equity is ultimately at the heart of ensuring public health and safety for all.”

After a weekend of rallies against hate, attacks against AAPI continue

SCREEN CAPTURE

Security cameras captured the attack. The security guard, right, ignored the incident.
Video of the incident is below.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Updated 10:15, April 2 to include name of the victim.

A 65-year old Asian woman on her way to church was viciously attacked Monday morning in New York City.

The attack was shown on a store's security camera. The victim was shoved to the ground as the attacker shouted, "F*** You. You don't belong here."

The man kicked her while she was down and stomped on her head and kicked her again before leaving the scene.

The attack got the attention of security guards inside the establishment where the camera was located. The video shows one guard looking up at the attack and then returning to the task he was doing. Another guard came into view and shut the glass door as the attacker left the scene.

The woman, Filipino American Vilma Kari, was taken to NYU Langone Hospital with swelling and pain. She suffered a fractured pelvis in the attack, but is in stable condition, according to police. She was released from the hospital on Tuesday.

“We’ve gone from being invisible to being seen as sub-human. We just want to be seen as American like everyone else,” tweeted Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y. after viewing the video.

The attack comes after a weekend of rallies and marches to protest the growing violence against Asian Americans. Thousands of people took part in the rallies that took place in cities throughout the nation.

The demonstrations on Saturday were part of a continuation of a planned National Day of Action on Friday, organized by Act Now to Stop War and End Racism Coalition, known as ANSWER. The national organization was founded after 9/11.

The demonstrations were sparked by a year-long growth in anti-Asian attacks because they are being blamed for bringing the coronavirus pandemic to the U.S.'s shores. They were a way to bring attention to the plight facing AAPI today.

The shooting spree in Atlanta that killed eight people, including six Asian women was the impetus for the most recent demonstrations and a statement from President Biden condemning the hate and violence targeting AAPI. "It's un-American. It must stop!" said the President. 

However, the attacks continue. In New York City, there has reportedly been a 1,300 percent increase in hate attacks against AAPI. 

There have been 33 hate crimes committed against AAPI victims in New York City  since the start of the year. The NYPD said that officers will now walk the streets undercover to capture suspect attackers.

In the last two weeks, alone: 

• Three days after the tragedy in Atlanta, a 68-year old Sri Lankan man was punched in the head while riding the subway in New York City. The attacker yelled racial slurs at him.
• On March 20, a 66-year-old Asian man was also punched, this time in the face, on the Lower East Side.
• Tthree more attacks were reported on March 21: a Chinese-American mother was hit twice in the face after she finished attending an anti-Asian hate protest in Union Square with her 7-year-old daughter; a 41-year-old Asian woman was thrown to the ground in Midtown, and a 54-year-old Asian woman was hit in the face with a metal pipe by a stranger while walking on the Lower East Side.
• A suspect used anti-Asian slurs at a woman on a train in Queens on March 23. He smashed her phone when she started recording him. 
• On March 26, in Midtown, a man shouted anti-Asian slurs at a 65-year-old Asian woman and waved an unknown object toward her. 
• The next day, an Asian woman was struck by a man who made anti-Asian statements in a Midtown subway station.

The NYPD’s Hate Crime Task Force is investigating all these incidents.

#StopAAPIhate, a website collecting anti-Asian reports says over 3800 attacks against AAPI have occurred in the year since the coronavirus forced health guidelines of social distancing, hand-washing and mask-wearing.

The same agency reports that in January and February of this year, there have been 500 incidents of hate reported nationwide.

California's attorney general nominee will target hate attacks against AAPI

SCREEN CAPTURE / KPIX

Assemblymember Rob Bonta speaks at the Manilatown Center in San Francisco's old Manilatown.

Gov. Gavin Newsom's pick for the California's vacated Attorney General spot is ready to hit the ground running once he's confirmed by the legislature. Among Assemblymember Rob Bonta's first tasks is to confront the year-long wave of attacks and confrontations against Asian Americans.

"We’re reeling," Bonta said Friday after Gov. Gavin Newsom introduced Bonta as his pick for AG. "People are hurting, scared, anxious, angry and it’s a full-on state of emergency, state of crisis and important."

"The Asian American community, and I know this from lived experience, from personal experience, as a member of the API community, is in a state of crisis right now, it’s a full-on state of emergency," Bonta said, noting how the types of crimes targeting Asian Americans have escalated from spitting and vulgarities to murder.

"It is really important for the people’s attorney, the chief law officer of the state of California, to see and value our API community, and to care, and also to take action," Bonta continued.

As Attorney General, he'll have the full support of Gov. Newsom, who said Friday that the surge of anti-Asian violence "infuriates" him since he grew up in San Francisco with many Asian American friends.

“What the hell is wrong with us?” Newsom asked.

Newsom noted in his emotional statement that although California is known for the diversity of its people, the states also has a long history of xenophobia-driven actions against Asians.

“We have to be vigilant, this is something that’s been with us for 150 years in this state and the country,” Newsom said.

Newsom's instant history lesson recalled the California Legislature's bias against Chinese immigrants in the 1800s, passed several measures aimed at Chinese people, including requiring special licenses, labor rules and preventing naturalization. In 1882, the federal Chinese Exclusion Act was signed into law.

Laws against Asians were driven by powerful Californians including Denis Kearney, a political leader and opponent of Chinese immigration, was active in San Francisco. Ironically Kearney Street, was the main street of the former Manilatown and the street where the historic International Hotel was located.

According to #StopAAPIHate, in the year the pandemic has gripped the nation, that is March 2020 to March 2021, over 3800 incidents of hate has been directed against the AAPI communities, from vandalism, verbal assaults to physical attacks.

In the first two months of 2021 alone, #StopAAPIHate reports it has already gathered 500 reports of hate incidents. If this rate continues, 2021 will outdo 2020's record number of hate-driven attacks.

Some of the actions Bonta hopes to undertake when he assumes his new is to ensure that an anti-hate hotline is up-and-running and that the criminal justice system provide more training for law enforcement and work with victims and communities to better understand and address hate.

A peek at Bonta's legislative efforts could give us a better idea of Bonta's aims. In the month prior to his nomination as Attorney General, Bonta introduced AB 886 which would provide support for victims and avenues of restorative justice.

“The recent rise in racist and xenophobic attacks on members of the API community and the larger increase in hate crimes must be addressed with decisive action,” said Bonta. “The embers of hate have always been present, but they have recently been fanned into a fire of violence by no less than the previous occupant of the White House.”

AB 886 will fund community-based organizations that provide culturally competent mental health services for victims of hate violence and restorative justice programs. AB 886 would also expand the eligibility for victims of hate violence to access victim compensation funds and not be denied solely because the victim did not file a police report.

“All communities deserve to be seen, valued, and protected,” said Bonta. “AB 886 would assure that consultation with the victim becomes a primary focus along with community healing. AB 886 would address prevention by providing additional restorative justice tools to proactively increase the likelihood that an individual who caused the harm would not do additional harm.”

An Asian American woman warrior donates almost $1M to fight racism against AAPI

SCREEN CAPTURE / CBS

Xiao Zhen Xie, right, explains to a police officer how she fought back against her attacker.

OPINION

I found a new badass Asian American hero. She comes in the form of Xiao Zhen Xie, the 75-year-old woman who was sucker-punched by a white man in San Francisco – and then fought back by smacking him with a wooden board. He had to be carried away on a stretcher.

The suspect, Steven Jenkins, a 36-year old white man, punched Xie minutes after he assaulted an 83-year-old Asian man. The suspect was being chased by a security guard when he decided to punch Xie.

Although shocked and injured, Xie instinctively grabbed a board and struck back.

I'm not an advocate of violence. I'd much rather anticipate and avoid a violent incident than wade into confrontation that would inevitably end up in a fight and one of us, perhaps both of us, would wind up injured.

But I can't help but cheer when I heard the news story of Xie fighting back on March 17 on Market Street, one of San Francisco's main streets, and delivering instant justice to a bully who made the grave error in assuming Xie would be an easy mark.

The security guard corralled the attacker until police arrived.

But fighting back is not what makes Xie a hero -- although, there was a bit of me that felt a sense of instant justice had occurred. It is what happened afterwards.

Her grandson, John Chen, started a GoFundMe page with a goal of $50,000 to help pay for his grandmother's medical expenses from the unprovoked attack. As of Sunday, March 28, the page has raised $985,000+ -- almost $1 million.

In an update post, Chen wrote that his grandmother is recovering well from the emotional trauma as well as the physical injuries that she suffered..

"She said we must not summit to racism and we must fight to the death if necessary, wrote Chen. 

"She also stated multiple times to donate all the funds generated in this GoFundMe back to the Asian American community to combat racism. She insists on making this decision saying this issue is bigger than her. This is my grandma, grandpa, and our family’s decision. We hope everyone can understand our decision."

Asian American elderly have been the victims of several violent, unprovoked attacks resulting in at least two deaths and countless injuries that required hospitalization.

The death of 84-year old Vichar Ratanapakdee, a Thai American grandfather who was on his morning walk in San Francisco when an attacker ran across the street and knocking the elder to the ground sparked a nationwide media campaign against the hate attacks against AAPI.

Word of Caution: The post is news laced with opinion. Readers are encouraged to read multiple accounts to form their own opinion.

#StopAsianHate Voices From Asian America: Some of the recent victims of the violence against Asians

(Graphics by Christine Chen of APIAvote.)

I wrote about four incidents of violence against AAPI elderly in the same posting last Feb. 6. Each incident was terrible but putting them all together it was shocking: the slashing of an elder's face in the New York subway, the violent shove of an elder in Oakland, the robbery of an elder in San Jose and the death of an 84-year old grandfather in San Francisco. 

However, it wasn't until the video by Nobel Peace Prize nominee Amanda Nguyen's video went viral, showing the violence of the unprovoked attacks on the elderly, who could have been our own grandparents that anger turned into action.

In the video, Nguyen complained that mainstream media hadn't been reporting the incidents and she was right. But seeing the elderly men falling, a woman fighting to hold onto her purse and the subway victim's scar got the media's attention.

After viewing the video, actors Daniel Wu and Daniel Dae Kim offered a $25,000 award that would lead to an arrest for the the attacker who pushed a 91-year old violently to the Oakland sidewalk.

“I decided, ’You know what?" Nguyen tells CNBC. "If we are getting locked out of mainstream media, I’m going to turn to social media, and I’m going to have a call to action for mainstream media outlets to uplift Asian stories'” 

The video racked up millions of views on TikTok, Instagram and Twitter.

Soon, the networks were. interviewing Wu, Kim and Nguyen. AAPI journalists advocated for coverage of the incidents and produced and reported special extended segments on news shows.

However, despite the media attention, the attacks continued. Most of the victims were the helpless elderly. Then the rallies, opeds, other celebrities and politicians began speaking out.

The following are not all of them. It seems like we hear of a new incident of hate directed at AAPI every day.

Then a lone white gunman walked into a spa in Georgia. 

#StopAAPIHate reports that from March 2020 to March 2021, about 3800 incidents have been collected on their website. Experts believe that many more attacks, insults or harassment have not been reported.

In the first two months of this year, over 500 incidents of violence and hate have already been recorded, says @StopAAPIHate.