Hate STILL Has No Home – #StopAsianHate

(Photo Credit: I Still Believe Campaign)

Last Summer, Noise 13 made a commitment towards anti-racism work in the wake of the police brutality that reignited the BLM movement. We collaborated as a team to implement policies that create space to consider and correct for biases wherever they may hide. 

Since then, the ongoing bullying, hate, brutality and violence against the Asian community has reminded us that anti-racism work never ends, that just because the spotlight may move on to other topics, the fear, intimidation and violence extended to all communities pushed to the margins is still very real, very dangerous. 

March’s tragedy in Atlanta, the unreasonable loss of Asian American lives, is awful, and it was felt by our whole team. Anti-Asian sentiment is not a new American phenomenon and dates back to the founding of our country. Though stories of these prejudice’s have not been as commonplace as injustices exacted upon BIPOC communities, that doesn’t diminish the experience and hardship of living as a person of Asian heritage in this country. We know we can all do a better job of supporting the wellness of Asian community members without having to be pushed to do so by the news media. 

No one should have to be a member of a targeted community in order to sense the oppressive hate perpetrated against the women in Atlanta, or the ongoing prejudice pointed towards the Asian community. However, this was definitely a punctuation of the persisting problem for us. The tragedy offered a chance to revisit our commitments to equity and inclusivity in support of and partnership with of our design staff.

(Photo Credit: Lionel Wong)

So here’s some of what we’re committing to Internally: 

1. Including Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPI) and people of Asian heritage in all communications about inclusivity and anti-racism.
   Note: AAPI typically refers to American citizens of many origins while “people of Asian heritage” recognizes non-citizens experiencing prejudice, as well.
2. Making space for hard conversations.
   We met as a team to create an opportunity to share how we all felt about March’s gun violence in Atlanta. From this meeting, our incredibly talented design studio shared that they would like to contribute to the global conversation surrounding anti-Asian prejudice in American by designing collaborative, encouraging visuals intended to support the AAPI and Asian heritage community, which we plan to launch later this month.
3. Anti-racism education that accounts for inclusivity and intersectionality.
   We’ve started an internal guide where the team shares resources they have found helpful, inspirational, supportive, or especially motivating. We know it’s no one’s duty but our own to squelch personal ignorance and that is a responsibility we each take very seriously, no matter how we identify.
4. Trying our hardest, listening intently, and asking questions before reacting/responding. 

Agreeing with everyone all of the time would be next to impossible (and boring), even when surrounded by like-minded people. We joke about “making the most of Thanksgiving” and not fighting with our relatives, but committing to having the hard conversation takes real action. That’s why we are reminding ourselves to do our best every day, and that means offering the respect in tough conversations that all humans deserve through active listening, to truly understand, and asking more questions to get to the essence of what the other person is saying. 

As Brene Brown says, “It is hard to hate close up. Move in!” So let’s all “move in” together to help dispel the fear that tends to drive so much racism and hate.

We wanted to share some of the excellent resources that have surfaced through our team conversations. Here are a few links to info and inspiration for your anti-racism journey. 

A Few Resources:

• Book List: #StopAsianHate Reading List
• Book List: 11 Must Read Books to Better Understand the Experience of Asian Americans 
• Video: PBS’ Asian Americans
• Magazine: Banana – All things AZN 
• Podcast: Calling it a Day – Episode 23: Stop Asian Hate
• Article: 6 AAPI Artists Reflect on the Spike in Anti-Asian Violence

As a team, we know we are not always going to “get it right,” but that it is crucial that we keep trying and stay in the conversation. These commitments, conversations, and anti-racism work are continuing conversations that will develop alongside the evolution of inclusivity and equity in our work and our home lives. 

Thank you for joining us on this journey. We’d love to know what you and your teams are taking on in support of #StopAsianHate in your communities.

(Left Photo Credit: @jocekittyllama & Right Photo Credit: @stopaapihate)