Condemning Anti-Asian Racism, Standing With Our Community
The shootings in Atlanta this week that resulted in the deaths of eight people, six of them women of Asian descent, are the latest instance of violence targeting Asian American people. At edX, we condemn all forms of racism, misogyny, and hate, and we stand with all Asian communities in this particularly difficult time.
Hate acts against Asian Americans have only increased over the past year due to false blame being placed with regards to the COVID-19 pandemic - nearly 3,800 reports of hate incidents targeting Asian Americans nationwide since last March, 70% reported by women, according to Stop AAPI Hate.
As we have conversations with our own community here at edX about how to best support our Asian colleagues, we turn to what grounds us - learning. We wanted to share some resources that our team has found helpful in understanding more about anti-Asian racism and the Asian American experience.
Some of these include courses that are designed to help increase our understanding of social justice and cultural diversity. For example, Unconscious Bias: From Awareness to Action, from CatalystX, which helps us become aware of, and check, the unconscious biases we bring to the workplace. Justice from Harvard expands our perspective on a variety of topics including human rights. And finally, Activism and Citizen Journalism through Media from WitsX helps us find our voice and promote the causes we believe in via social media.
We also wanted to share additional resources that bring you straight to the source to learn more about anti-Asian racism and the Asian experience both in the U.S. and globally. We hope these resources help you feel more informed and open up opportunities for conversations that can lead to real change.
Read:
Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong (virtual book club)
The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan (reader’s guide)
The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston (discussion questions)
Watch:
Asian Americans is a five-part documentary series from PBS on the history of Asians in America. View the episode guide.
#AsianAmCovidStories, from the Asian American Documentary Network, is a series of mini-docs on YouTube chronicling the Asian American experience with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Follow:
Credits: Anti-Asian Violence Resources, NBC, CNBC
Last updated: March 2021