Stop Asian American Pacific Islander Hate

Publish Date: April 1, 2021

Acts of hate against Asian American and Pacific Islander communities has risen during the COVID-19 pandemic. On March 16, Rejoice Chavira and Souts Xayaphanthong, who serve as co-chairs of the CHC Asian Pacific Islander Month planning committee, along with committee members Chloe De los Reyes, Alexa Aslanian, Ericka Paddock, Gwen Di Ponio, Racquel Schoenfeld, Maita Dawang, and Christina Sweeting, hosted the Stop Asian American Pacific Islander Hate presentation.

Dr. Russell Jeung, a leading sociologist of Asian American identity, race, and religion and professor of Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University, spoke to the audience of 60 CHC faculty, staff, and students about the increase in racism and hate crimes over the past year fueled by a false belief that Chinese Americans were responsible for the pandemic.

Dr. Jeung discussed Asian American racism, the rise of hate crimes, and the STOP AAPI Hate project, which collects information from victims to advocate for better protection, educational resources, and policy changes. Jeung shared real-life examples of victims and offered strategies “We hope that we can collectively work together to support and address the needs of the community during this tumultuous time.”for our community to help prevent harassment and reduce bullying and hate crimes.

In closing comments, faculty member Chloe De los Reyes thanked Jeung on behalf of the committee. “Our sincerest thanks to you, Dr. Jeung, for your work in raising awareness about the rising Anti-Asian discrimination in our nation. Your presentation has helped us get a better understanding of the gravity of this situation. We hope that we can collectively work together to support and address the needs of the community during this tumultuous time,” said De los Reyes.