By Jia Mei
On March 15, 2021, I got a New York Times notification on my phone saying that a shooting at spas in Atlanta killed 8 people. Two hours later, my roommate told me that some of the victims have been identified– 6 of whom were women of Asian descent. As an Asian American who has been following the news on the rise in anti-Asian violence during the pandemic, I couldn’t help but think back on all the deeply rooted problems that led up to this tragic mass shooting.
Growing up, I knew of many Asian relatives and friends’ families that worked in industries that exploited their labor—from restaurants to nail shops to salons to massage spas. The work conditions for these places are far from desirable, but this was a way of surviving in a capitalist economy that depended on the labor of marginalized groups for sustenance and progress. This was the way that many parents sacrificed to support their children in pursuit of the American Dream.
However, the pursuit of the American Dream is often oversimplified. Society views Asians and Asian Americans as a monolithic group that is high-achieving with statuses that are comparable to the White majority (Model Minority Myth). But this monolithic view is problematic and complicated.
According to a 2018 study by the PEW research center, Asians are the most economically divided groups in the United States. This finding reveals the diversity and complexity of the term “Asians.” Contrasting to the “well-off Asians” in society’s dominant narrative, a New York Times article revealed that many Spa victims were of lower-income, immigrant backgrounds who worked long-hours to support their families.
On March 16th– the day after the mass shooting– I saw that all of my friends’ social media accounts were saturated with stories of the Atlanta shooting and anti-Asian violence. As I was scrolling through the social media feed, I thought, “I’ve been sharing stories of anti-Asian violence all along, but you all have said nothing. Why does it take the death of six women in a fatal shooting, featured in a national newspaper, to make people realize our community’s pain?”
While the mass shooting in Atlanta made the news and alerted many people of the rise in Anti-Asian violence during this COVID-19 pandemic, many other crimes against Asians and Asian Americans have not reached the public’s attention. The string of attacks against elderly Asians in public spaces from the beginning of Lunar New Year until now have been omitted by news outlets– from the killing of 84-year-old Thai grandpa Vicha Ratanapakdee to the fatal attack on Pak Ho. These horrific incidents on the elderly prompted the start of the social media campaign (#protectourelders) among the Asian American community on Instagram.
“A Bad Day“
Social media is powerful in its framing of stories. Various figures have attempted to suggest the victimhood of the Atlanta shooter suspect. One police officer reported that the reason behind the shooting suspect’s action was because he had a “bad day.” News media outlets also reported that his motives were not racist, but rather, due to his sex addiction.
However, “racism” and “misogyny” towards Asian women are not mutually exclusive—but rather, they intersect in ways that are inseparable. In my Asian American classes, I learned that fetishization of Asian women is not new—it is a product of years of U.S. imperialism abroad through war and militarism. In my class “War Literature in Asian American Studies” 8th block in 2020, we read Fox Girl by Nora Okja Keller—a book which I remember vividly in its re-telling of the commodification of women’s bodies by American soldiers Post-Korean War and its impact on family dynamics and the Korean Diaspora. Literature, history, and present-day issues related to Asian women are, in many ways, intertwined by themes of misogyny, racism, and violence.
Therefore, I invite you, to think:
What are sexual stereotypes of Asian women? How are Asian women portrayed in the media (movies, songs, propaganda, etc.)? What are the implications of this misogynistic rhetoric coupled with the racist rhetoric from the pandemic?
I hope these realizations will become for you a call to action.
I acknowledge that there is a long way to go before change can be seen on a systemic level. However, we must do our part. We must also know that this is the time for Asian, Asian American, and Pacific Islanders to unite, voice, and act. We must stand up and speak against systems which have so long pitted us against other minority groups. This is a time when solidarity and coalition-building are of utmost importance in driving transformative change.
Timeline of CC Community’s Response to the Rise in Anti-Asian Violence
(3/28/2021) Asian Student Union Solidarity Statement (link)
(3/25/2021) AAPI Community Resources for Support and Healing; led by Mateen from The Butler Center (link)
(3/19/2021) Email from Acting-Co Presidents- “Condemning Anti-Asian Terror Attack”
(3/18/2021) Open Forum Hosted by Dr. Emily Chan, Dr. Yogesh Chandrani, and Dr. Aline Lo
(3/17/2021) Petition for Asian American Professor Ryan Buyco to remain as tenure-track professor (link)
(3/2/2021) Email from Acting-Co President “Supporting Our Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander Community Members”
