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 a some helpful information:
WORKING WITH KIDS
- Books by and about Asian Americans for 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 microagressions (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 (Rethinking Schools): Useful information for teachers and parents
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 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