Asian-American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Representation

The violent shootings in Atlanta this week were a chilling and saddening reminder of the violence, racism, and discrimination faced by the Asian-American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community throughout the history of our country, and alarmingly increasing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

 I wanted to share some helpful information:

WORKING WITH KIDS

• Books by and about Asian Americans of all ages 

• Tips for talking about racism and violence with children (topics we must address in a developmentally appropriate way) 

• Not all unkindness is the same: Teaching 1st graders about microaggressions (food for thought for parents & teachers)

STANDING UP FOR OURSELVES & OTHERS

• Responding to microaggressions (it's not just overreacting)

• Bystander Intervention Training - to stop Asian-American and xenophobic harassment (free interactive workshops)

• Local story: Racist violence inspires some who kept quiet to speak up

• Open letter from Wayne Au and Moé Yonamine

SOME OTHER RESOURCES & STORIES WORTH REVIEWING

(not all are appropriate for young children & certainly not a comprehensive list of issues we should all know about):

• Confronting Prejudice: How to protect yourself and help others 

• How pandemics have been used to justify anti-Asian violence

• Resources to Help Empower Asian and Pacific Islander Communities

• The murdered women in Atlanta: Soon Chung Park, Hyun Jung Grant, Suncha Kim, Yong Ae Yue, Xiaojie Tan, and Daoyou Feng, and say their names correctly using the Asian American Journalists Association pronunciation guide

• The history of violence against Asian Americans and how ignoring that history is itself a form of violence

• Japanese Imprisonment "Internment" (often not properly addressed in the social studies curriculum)

• The racist massacre in Los Angeles that killed 10% of the local Chinese population

• A Different Asian American Timeline in the context of US history

• The murder of Vincent Chin (who happened to be Chinese-American) by white laid-off autoworkers in Detroit who blamed him for the rise of the Japanese car industry

• The school shooting in Stockton, California, where a gunman opened fire on a schoolyard filled mainly with Asian American children

• The 2012 white supremacist attack on a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin