Dear Asian Americans, Please Stop Justifying Your Racism
Most of my Facebook newsfeed consists of black Americans screaming in outrage against the murder of George Floyd, the injustice of Breonna Taylor’s case, and the countless police brutality cases that go unchecked across the nation.
As the days have moved on past, the posts have become angrier and angrier. At first, they were informative posts with a unique eye to the first-person experiences black people face in their own lives that highlighted the injustices they live through because of their skin color. After a while, it became anger for an unanswered call to the lack of government action carried out to give justice to black communities across America for four hundred plus years.
George Floyd’s murder has made this time different, somehow. On one hand, it feels like the general public, regardless of race, ethnicity, or country of origin, is being awakened to the injustices committed against black people at the hands of armed militar-esque police forces in America. On the other, it’s a feeling that cannot be described. Like the atmosphere has lifted and flipped on its side. Like something is about to change. Like something positive is about to turn the corner.
But this wave is marked by the friction of an undercurrent pulling it towards the opposite direction, particularly in Asian American populations.
A Facebook friend of Vietnamese descent posted amid the George Floyd newsfeed a word banner with giant laughing emojis splashed across it that said:
“Yellow Lives Matter too. It’s not just about Black Lives. Like when people called Coronavirus the Chinese Virus.”
The first time I saw it, I was disgusted. How dare he take this moment away from the Black Lives Matter movement. But I looked at the comments section and it was empty.
Maybe it was just me, I thought. Maybe I was just too sensitive about this.
About thirty minutes later though, I went back on my Facebook feed and the same post had ten comments. All the comments contained responses…
