Last month in New York, a Filipino man’s face was slashed with a boxcutter. In San Francisco, an elderly Thai man died of head injuries after being shoved on the sidewalk. On Tuesday, a shooting spree at three Atlanta-area spas killed eight people, six of which were women of Asian descent. Every day it seems more and more incidents of anti-Asian violence — both physical and emotional — are reported in the news and on social media.
Stop Asian American Pacific Islander Hate (AAPI) — an organization formed in "response to the alarming escalation in xenophobia and bigotry resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic" — reported more than 3,795 acts of violence against Asian Americans in the United States from March 2020 to February 2021. Forty of those reports were from the state of Ohio, where more than 345,000 AAPI people reside.
The most recent high-profile local Asian-American discrimination incident reported in Cincinnati occurred online last September when a University of Cincinnati student shared a screenshot of an email from his engineering professor that said, "For students testing positive for the Chinese virus, I will give no grade." The professor was placed on administrative leave without pay pending a review.
In 2018, Cincinnati had the highest rate per capita of reported hate crimes in Ohio. However, the U.S. Department of Justice says a majority of hate crimes go unreported, so Cincinnatians can certainly assume more are occurring.
Felicity Tao, chair and founder of the Greater Cincinnati Chinese Cultural Exchange Association (GCCEA), a nonprofit committed to improving cross-cultural understanding and supporting regional diversity and inclusiveness, says the organization has not received any reports of anti-Asian discrimination or violence in 2021.
“It seems like these things have happened in areas with a concentrated Asian population and here, the Asian community is spread out," Tao says. "In general, I do feel grateful that our community has seen peace.”
The GCCEA has worked to make sure Cincinnati remains a safe place for all of Ohio’s AAPI residents.
“We have been hosting virtual information events where we alert one another whenever something happens," Tao says. "We want to be proactive so no one is in a vulnerable situation.”
Because anti-Asian sentiments have been present in America for centuries, using disease to spur hate is nothing new.
“Such discrimination can be traced back to when Chinese immigrants first came to the United States,” Tao says.
In the 19th century, Chinese workers were banned when white labor unions claimed Chinese people carried more contagious diseases than white people. Similar tactics were used to justify the Page Act of 1875, a law restricting East Asian women from immigrating to the United States, and the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, a law banning all Chinese immigrants from the United States.
Tao says America’s history of racial intolerance toward Asian Americans is often an untold and suppressed story.
“There was lots of legal discrimination against the Japanese, Chinese and other Asian people,” she says. "I still don’t think the Asian community has a lot of visibility in society or influence in the power structure. There is still a lack of education to the general public about the Asian population and their history in America.”
For those hoping to educate themselves about the national dialogue surrounding anti-Asian discrimination, GCCEA has shared three ways in which Cincinnatians can be more effective allies:
See Something, Say Something
When someone you are talking to makes a racist comment or tells an anti-Asian joke about the coronavirus, speak up. Pause a few seconds before continuing the conversation so they know the discussion cannot continue before you address the discrimination that has taken place. Consider asking, “What made you say that?” so you can have an honest discussion about what’s been said.
Educate
Your goal is to clarify why what’s been said needs to be untaught. Explain that diseases are no longer named after their place of origin and associating diseases and behaviors by race is both wrong and historically harmful to those people. This is why COVID-19 was given the name "COVID-19" versus, for example, the Spanish Flu of 1918. If someone downplays what they’ve said, share some of the incidents above that show the discrimination AAPI people are currently facing when this behavior ensues.
Echo
When you hear someone speak up about anti-Asian and Asian American discrimination, reiterate their message any way you can. This can encourage others to speak up against bigotry and it shows you are against it, too. Showing support can be as simple as sharing information that raises awareness about these issues on your social network or attending an antiracist event online.
In January, U.S. President Joe Biden released a memorandum calling all federal agencies to condemn violence against AAPI in the United States. Although it is important for the new administration to acknowledge the harm AAPI communities have faced, Tao believes individual allies speaking up, educating and echoing anti-racist messaging are the strongest tools for change.
“Our community would appreciate support from any ally and anyone who is willing to listen, share our stories and voice their concern and support,” she says. "We want to be better and we can do better. Hopefully most people in our society want to be allies.”
Follow Stop Asian American Pacific Island Hate, Asian American's Advancing Justice, and the Greater Cincinnati Chinese Cultural Exchange Association for more resources.