LEADING ORGANIZATIONS
FROM DIVERSE COMMUNITIES UNITE AND CALL FOR ACTION TO END ANTI-ASIAN HATE
Coalition of Organizations to Have Ongoing Dialogue to Help Address Challenges
Affecting the AAPI Community
New York, NY (April 22, 2021) — In response to the historic
increases in anti-Asian and Pacific Islander (AAPI) hatred, violence, and
xenophobia, today leading organizations from diverse communities across the
United States are calling for action and change.
Like many Americans, the AAPI community has faced increased unemployment, food
and housing insecurity, shuttering of local small businesses, and safety risks
to frontline and healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Hate and
violence, fueled by fear and misinformation, have made an already difficult
period even harder. In the past year alone, more than 3,800 incidents of
violence and hatred have been reported against the AAPI community.
Today’s call for action is being organized by Committee of 100, a nonprofit
organization that works to ensure the full inclusion and participation of
Chinese Americans in all aspects of American life.
"We at the Committee of 100 are extremely saddened by the increased
attacks against Chinese Americans and the Asian American and Pacific Islander
community. Chinese Americans are Americans. Period. The violence and rhetoric
now targeting our communities across the U.S. is horrific, sad, and
unacceptable,” said Gary Locke, Chairman-Elect of Committee of 100. “For
centuries now, the Chinese American and AAPI community continue to be seen as
perpetual foreigners, strangers in our own homeland – America. We are extremely
thankful to all of the AAPI and non-AAPI organizations for standing with us as
we collectively work towards concrete actions that will address the roots of
the violence and xenophobia directed at the Asian American and Pacific Islander
community. Hate has no place in our society.”
The rise in anti-Asian hate and violence is horrific and unacceptable. Each day
another incident devastates America. In January, President Biden issued a
presidential memorandum condemning racism, xenophobia, and intolerance against
the 21 million AAPIs in the U.S. But we need action. United in the same spirit
and mission, the 1990 Institute, American Jewish Committee (AJC),
Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs
(APAPA), Committee of 100, Council of Korean Americans, NAACP, National
Asian/Pacific Islander Chamber of Commerce and Entrepreneurship (National ACE),
National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials (NALEO)
Educational Fund, National Urban League, and Partnership With Native Americans
are calling for concrete action. The organizations all share common concerns
and experiences around racism, violence, discrimination, and marginalization.
We, the undersigned organizations call for law enforcement, elected officials,
and government agencies to ensure a holistic response to the Anti-Asian hate
problem, and recognize the urgent need to consider and act upon the following
recommendations:
- We call on all elected officials – including governors,
mayors, and members of Congress – to forcefully denounce all acts of
anti-Asian American racism and bigotry.
- We call on the new U.S. Attorney General and the U.S.
Department of Justice to set up a task force to specifically investigate
and combat increased violence directed towards the AAPI community.
- We call on the Department of Justice to revisit its
China Initiative and examine whether the program has caused the spike in
increased prosecution of innocent Chinese American scientists.
- We call for the federal government to provide funding
to state and local law enforcement agencies for education, training, and
community outreach on bias incidents and crimes.
- We call on the federal government to combat
misinformation and online extremism which has led to the increase in AAPI
hate.
- We call on all law enforcement agencies to prioritize
their response to criminal acts of bigotry, racism, and hate inflicted on
the AAPI community as well as other communities of color, whether verbal,
physical, or psychological.
- We call on all elected officials and lawmakers to
ensure survivors of hate crimes have access to support services in
languages used by their local communities.
- We call for the investigation and removal if warranted,
of any public official, government employee, or law enforcement officer
found to be stoking hate or discriminating against people of AAPI descent.
- We call on senior executives and those in leadership
positions to ensure that the AAPI community has a voice at the table,
including in the boardroom.
- We call on all concerned groups across all ethnicities
to unite, explore concrete partnerships, and collaborate to bring forth a
safer, better, and more ideal America.
The undersigned organizations have also agreed
to meet on a quarterly basis to continue discussions via joint programs,
activities, and advocacy to combat anti-AAPI hate.
Calling for Action
“We call on everyone to join our vision for a positive environment for Asians
in America and for U.S. relations with China,” said Dan Chao, Chairman of the
Board, 1990 Institute. “The 1990 Institute provides information
that affects the lives of Asian Americans, and indeed all Americans, to provoke
thought on topical issues, including how the perceptions of China and the
contributions of Asian Americans affect all Americans. Education leads to
understanding and understanding leads to change. The 1990
Institute stands in solidarity with everyone standing up for our
country's unity and humanity.”
“The scourge of assaults on Asian Americans is horrific,” said David Harris,
CEO, American Jewish Committee (AJC). “As American Jews who
also have painfully experienced the fear and tragedy of hate, we join with our
partners in the Asian American community to call on leaders to take concrete
measures to address the violence. Silence is unacceptable. Unity in combating
hate is absolutely imperative.”
“There’s great strength in numbers, which is why it is so important for all
Americans to join together with the AAPI community in speaking out against this
scourge of hatred, and prejudice,” said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO
and National Director. “Today, we issue a challenge to our elected, law
enforcement, and civic leaders to do more. Only through coordinated action can
we prevent further acts of bias-motivated violence and hurtful scapegoating.”
“APAPA strongly supports Committee of 100’s initiative to form a coalition
across all communities in an effort to help address the challenges in the AAPI
community,” said Ken Fong, Chair, APAPA. “The United States is at
our greatest when we value every citizen regardless of race, ethnicity, gender,
age, religion, disability, and sexual orientation. If we are to lead the world,
we must cherish people from all over the world!”
“As a proud American organization dedicated to the advancement and inclusion of
5 million Chinese Americans across all aspects of American life, Committee of
100 has spoken out against discrimination and racism for more than 30 years,”
said Zheng Yu Huang, President of Committee of 100. “This coalition across
communities showcases the strength and impact we together possess. We thank all
of the AAPI and non-AAPI organizations for joining with Committee of
100 to address racism, discrimination, and violence against the AAPI
community. Collectively, we can work to put these horrific incidents in the
past and move forward as one nation.”
“Racism, xenophobia, and discrimination impact all of our minority communities
and are issues we must band together to defeat. We are proud to stand with
our fellow national organizations representing AAPI, Black, Jewish,
Latinx, and other communities to fight for the protection and respect
of all Americans,” said Abraham Kim, Ph.D., Executive Director, Council
of Korean Americans. “In light of the horrific rise in hate
incidents and violence against the AAPI community, we challenge our
government officials, law enforcement agencies, business executives, and civic
leaders to act immediately, with courage and conviction, to ensure
the safety and security of this community.”
"We all have a responsibility to wake up each day and denounce hate in all
forms and all communities," said Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of
the NAACP. "As a human race, we do not exist in a vacuum and
we cannot allow our normalcy to be that of violent attacks. We are committed to
working together to push back against those that seek to harm."
“During these difficult times, anti-Asian racism and violence are further
damaging the small business community amidst this global pandemic. Now more
than ever, we all have to be united, speaking out and standing together,” said
Chiling Tong, Chief Executive Officer & President of the National
Asian/Pacific Islander Chamber of Commerce and Entrepreneurship (National
ACE). “We seek the support, allyship, and advocacy of other national
organizations and large corporations to take action by addressing all forms of
bias and racism that disproportionately and negatively impact our diverse
communities. AAPI small businesses are not able to operate safely and need
assistance now. National ACE calls on its partners to join in responding
to the ongoing violence against the AAPI small business community by helping to
educate employees, customers, and the public to intervene to halt these
deplorable acts. We are proud and are #AAPISTRONG.”
“After four years of policy and rhetoric that fanned the flames of bigotry and
inspired acts of violence against communities of color, the pandemic exposed
America’s racial fault lines and forced the nation to confront its legacy of
white supremacy,” said Marc H. Morial, President and CEO, National
Urban League. “The National Urban League stands in solidarity with our
Asian-American brothers and sisters and urges the nation to seize the
opportunity to create lasting change by emerging from this crisis a stronger
nation.”
“As our nation continues to reckon with the legacy and present-day
manifestations of systemic racism, we must work together to advance justice and
foster a society that promotes equality, opportunity, and freedom from racial
hate and violence,” stated Arturo Vargas, CEO, NALEO Educational Fund.
“The rise in violence and discrimination targeting the AAPI community that we
are witnessing are horrifying and antithetical to the ideals we espouse as a
nation that proclaims to value liberty, diversity, and inclusion. We must take
a stand against this kind of hatred and xenophobia and adopt common-sense standards
of anti-racism that promote equal justice and freedom from discrimination of
any kind.”
“PWNA respects and honors the diverse culture, history, and concerns of all
communities in America. As a Native American-serving organization, we know
firsthand how U.S. systems and policies have created social injustice and
disenfranchisement for those most vulnerable,” said Christina Kazhe, Chairman
of the Board, Partnership With Native Americans. “As a nation,
we’ve seen an overwhelming rise in hate crimes directed at Asian Americans
since the onset of COVID-19. PWNA denounces all forms of racism against all
populations who endure inequities on account of their race or ethnicity. We
commend all those who are speaking up and championing hope for a brighter future.”
Stay Connected & Engaged
Chinese Americans and the broader AAPI community have made tremendous
contributions to the fabric of American life for centuries. In February, the
Economist Intelligence Unit released a report, commissioned by Committee of 100
and sponsored in part by Citi Private Bank, that looked at 175-years of Chinese
American contributions. “From Foundations to Frontiers” can be downloaded for
free at https://bit.ly/chineseamericanstories.
Committee of 100 recently launched a bi-monthly newsletter called Combatting
AAPI Hate, with the goal to highlight what AAPI organizations across the
country are doing to combat the xenophobia, violence, and hate being cast upon
the AAPI community. By having all information in one location, it will allow
organizations to more effectively collaborate and plan their responses and
efforts and to receive better support and awareness. If you have news you want
to be considered for the next issue, email aapinewsletter@committee100.org and
sign up for free at bit.ly/combattingAAPIhate.
- Follow 1990 Institute on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
and YouTube or reach out at contact@1990institute.org.
- Follow ADL on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram,
and YouTube or reach out at
adl.org/contact.
- Follow AJC on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram,
and YouTube or reach out at
global.ajc.org/secure/contact-us.
- Follow APAPA on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram or
reach out at info@apapa.org.
- Follow Committee of 100 on Facebook, Twitter,
and LinkedIn.
- Follow Council of Korean Americans on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram,
and LinkedIn, or reach out at info@councilka.org.
- Follow NAACP on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram,
and YouTube or reach out at
naacp.org/contact-us/.
- Follow National ACE on Facebook, Twitter,
and LinkedIn or reach out at info@nationalace.org.
- Follow National Urban League on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn or reach out at
nul.org/contact-us.
- Follow NALEO Educational Fund on Facebook, Twitter,
and Instagram.
- Follow Partnership With Native Americans on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn,
and Instagram.
About Committee of 100
Committee of 100 is a non-profit U.S. leadership organization of prominent
Chinese Americans in business, government, academia, healthcare, and the arts
focused on public policy engagement, civic engagement, and philanthropy. For
over 30 years, Committee of 100 has served as a preeminent organization
committed to the dual missions of promoting the full participation of Chinese
Americans in all aspects of American life and constructive relations between
the United States and Greater China. Visit https://www.committee100.org/
or follow Committee of 100 on LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook for more
information.
