Rallies Planned To Denounce Anti-Asian Hate Crimes
Rallies have been held across Metro Vancouver as part of a National Day of Action Against Anti-Asian Racism. The rallies also seek to address “bystander silence”.
Mildred German
May 11, 2021
Unceded Territories – Dozens of planned rallies yesterday (May 10) have been held from British Columbia to Ontario to denounce the surge of Anti-Asian hate crimes.
“The purpose of the rally is basically to raise the awareness of the anti-Asian racism that is surging right now in Vancouver,” said Doris Mah of Burnaby, BC and co-founder of the Stand With Asians Coalition.
According to a NEWS 1130 report, Mah was inspired after hearing from a woman in her neighbourhood who was recently harassed at a grocery store. Mah also shared that the National Day of Action Against Anti-Asian Racism is not to just stop anti-Asian hate- but also to address what she calls “bystander silence.”
“I’ve seen a lot of video footage where there are a lot of seniors who are being pushed and shoved around and people were just standing by and not doing anything about it,” she explained.
https://www.citynews1130.com/2021/05/10/vancouver-rallies-against-anti-asian-hate-ca nada/
BYSTANDER SILENCE
Harrowing video footage of a man kicking and stomping 65-year-old Filipina American, Vilma Kari, near Times Square in New York City on March 29 not only shows the brutal attack, but also an example of “bystander silence”.
Kari was kicked in her stomach -as she was crumpled to the sidewalk, the attacker kicked her in the head. Then again. And again. Her attacker was yelling “You don’t belong here.”
The attack happened in broad daylight, yet the senior Kari was repeatedly kicked as the video also exposed a heartbreaking “bystander silence”. The building’s lobby staff stood idly watching, while a security guard closed the door as Kari laid down hurt and injured a few metres away.
The video went viral on social media and much criticism was given to the lobby staff and the security guard by those who watched the footage. As a result of the inaction, the lobby staff and security guard were fired.
VANCOUVER, BC – THE ANTI-ASIAN HATE CRIME CAPITAL OF NORTH AMERICA
“It’s said to be the most Asian city outside Asia,” as author Natalie Obiko Pearson referred to Vancouver, BC in her article, This Is the Anti-Asian Hate Crime Capital of North America.
Published by the U.S. based media outlet Bloomberg on May 7, 2021, Pearson’s article adds, “The kind of place that should be immune to a rise in pandemic-fueled racism.”
But, despite all the Asian food establishments, feasts, and multiple crowds and tourist-filled events, hard working people, and Asian achievements and landmarks, crime data determined Vancouver, BC the “Anti-Asian Hate Crime Capital of North America”.
https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2021-vancouver-canada-asian-hate-crimes/
Meanwhile, a report from the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University San Bernardino, USA shows Vancouver more reported anti-Asian hate crimes in 2020 than any other city in North America.
Vancouver’s anti-Asian racism is not new. As the coronavirus is believed as “the Chinese virus”, the pandemic-fueled Anti-Asian hate and hate crimes spiked to an eightfold (up to 800%) increase in 2020 compared to 2019.
A survey also shows one out of two B.C. residents of Asian descent have experienced a hate incident in the last year. Many more Anti-Asian hate crimes are also believed to remain unreported.