Burnaby is the first city in Canada to officially declare day of action
Toronto
Several Canadian cities have proclaimed May 10 as the ‘Day of Action Against Anti-Asian Racism ’ in an effort to raise awareness about the massive spike in hate crimes against people of Asian origin.
The date has also been chosen because this month is Canada’s Asian Heritage Month.
The initiative comes from Stand With Asians Coalition (SWAC), a grassroots movement concerned about the surge of anti-Asian racism in Canada. First generation immigrant Doris Mah started the call out with her local council in Burnaby, BC last month and organized an online group. In response to the plea, Burnaby is the first city in Canada to officially declare May 10 as a Day of Action Against Asian Racism with events planned for that day. Mah also tabled a motion for the creation of an anti-racism task force
“Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been an alarming increase in anti-Asian racism in Canada and across North America,” Mah said in a press release dated May 4.
“All forms of hate should be condemned. There is no room for race-based hate in our community. We must condemn all forms of hate. May is Asian Heritage Month in Canada. I think it is very fitting that we honour Asian culture by committing ourselves, once again, to eliminating racism and hate. A dedicated task force is the right move to fully understand the insidious and dangerous impact of all forms of racism, including anti-Asian racism in our community.”
While it is great to see citizens stepping up to address the cracks of the reporting system, the federal government needs to lead the whole country in addressing and combating anti-Asian racism, according to Mah. Vancouver has seen a staggering increase of over 700%, Burnaby – 350% increase, and Ottawa – 600% increase in 2020. A recent federally-funded study reported 1150 cases of racist attacks in Canada last year. Forty percent were reported in Ontario and forty four percent were reported in B.C. Sixty percent of the cases were reported by women. A 2018 report from the Public Health Association found Canada to have 11 percent more discrimination than the U.S. does.
Various labour unions and community organizations have endorsed SWAC’s call for action.
As part of the Day of Action, SWAC is hosting an online rally on Monday May 10, 2021 at 5:00 P.M., Pacific Time / 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time. Speakers include Jenny Kwan, MP (Vancouver – Kingsway), Dupinder Saran, Registered Nurse and Member of the South Asian COVID Task Force, former MP Olivia Chow, and Matthew Green, MP (Hamilton Centre).
