Activism
Asian Americans Know Centuries of White Supremacy Too
I’m all for recycling. The good kind. Paper. Plastics. Just not the hate.
But what do we have with us in Atlanta?
It’s Vincent Chin, you know the Asian American killed in Detroit in 1982 with a baseball bat by
a white auto worker angry at Japanese imports taking over the market.
But Chin was Chinese, not Japanese. Details.
That’s why I say Atlanta was Vincent Chin with the names changed.
Soon Chung Park, 74, worked at Gold spa.
Hyun Jung Grant, 51, the single mother who worked at Gold Spa to support herself and her two
sons.
Suncha Kim, 69, a Gold Spa worker.
Yong Ae Yue, 63, a worker at the Aromatherapy Spa.
Xiaojie Tan, 49, the owner of Young’s Asian Massage.
Daoyou Feng, 44, an employee at Young’s Asian Massage.
Those six names strike the discordant history of the hateful treatment of Asian Americans in this
country, from the Chinese Exclusion Act in the 19th Century to today.
Asian Americans know hate and racism from their first day in America.
President Joe Biden recognized it. And now suddenly, Biden has become one of the most
pro-Asian American presidents the U.S. has seen since Reagan signed the bill giving Japanese
Americans redress.
Think about that. Did either of the Bushes, Clinton, or even Obama do anything that addressed
Asian American existential angst like Biden?
One thing for sure, the last president was the absolute worst. He slurred Asian Americans and
made us targets.
In contrast, Biden has shined a light on us and made us visible.
He selected Vice President Kamala Harris, who is half South Asian of Indian descent.
As he began his presidency, Biden signed an unusual executive order making sure everyone in
the country knew that the attacks on Asian Americans were wrong and “un-American.”
He came out strong for us in his first national television address a few weeks ago.
And then, after meeting with local AAPI leaders after last week’s shootings in Atlanta, Biden
once again elevated our status simply by showing everyone he has our backs. His remarks are
worth remembering because they put him on record, as he described the impact of Trump
administration rhetoric on the AAPI community.
“It’s been a year of living in fear for their lives,” Biden said of all AAPIs in the country. “Hate
and violence often hide in plain sight and often are met with silence. That’s been true throughout
our history. and that has to change.
“Because our silence is complicity. We cannot be complicit. We have to speak out. We have to
act. For all the good the laws can do, we have to change our hearts.
“Hate can have no safe harbor in America. It must stop. And it’s on all of us, all of us together, to
make it stop.”
Strong words, from no less than the president of the United States.
It’s enough to unite Asian Americans. Is our fear enough to unite a country?
Not with Republicans like Texas Congressman Chip Roy, who couldn’t find the empathy at last
week’s Judiciary Subcommittee hearing to change his heart and join in condemning the murder
of eight people in Atlanta, six of whom were Asian American women.
“My concern about the hearing is that it seems to want to venture into the policing of rhetoric,”
said Roy, a Trump backer who was trying to defend the ex-president’s “China Virus” and “Kung
Flu” remarks.
Asian American voters, a third of whom voted Republican for Trump, should remember this. The
Republicans who remain hell-bent on defending Trump’s big lie–that he won the 2020
election–see “China Virus” as a matter of Trump’s free speech.
And what of the thousands of AAPIs victimized by his hateful turn of phrase?
Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) let him have it.
“This hearing was to address the hurt and pain of our community, and to find solutions,” Meng
said in a rare show of emotion and passion. “We will not let you take our voice away from us.”
That’s where we are today.
People are angry. And only the Democrats truly seem interested, not just in stopping the hate but
in recognizing it.
This week, Meng and Sen. Mazie Hirono continued to campaign for their Covid Hate Crime Bill
that would have the Justice Department conduct fast reviews of possible hate crime cases. This
was thought up long before the shootings in Atlanta, but it would seem to be perfect timing. The
the bill also sets up an online reporting system in different Asian languages that would stop the
undercounting of hate crimes and make it easy for AAPIs to report them.
Robert Aaron Long, 21, the Atlanta shooting suspect, has been charged with eight counts of
murder and one count of aggravated assault. Long has admitted to the shootings but told police
he was just a religious man battling sex addiction. The shootings Long told police, weren’t
racially motivated.
That’s what they all say.
Ronald Ebens, who killed Vincent Chin with a baseball bat, said the same thing.
Ebens did get off without spending time in jail. Long is being held without bail while the police
continue to investigate.
That does nothing for Asian Americans, still grief-stricken and angry. Hate crime enhancements
could easily be applied if the new Georgia state hate crime statute that expands coverage to
include sex as well as race, is used.
But if that’s not forthcoming, it would definitely send Asian Americans a harsh message of our
real value in this country.
It will also test the community’s strength and courage. What will our response be then? Will
others in the BIPOC feel our pain, join us in alliance, and speak with one voice in unison against
these crimes?
Or will AAPI be left wondering how we get justice for our six sisters killed in Atlanta?
Soon Chung Park.
Hyun Jung Grant.
Suncha Kim.
Yong Ae Yue.
Xiaojie Tan.
Daoyou Feng.
They are our dead, the latest in the sad narrative of Asian Americans in this country since the
19th Century, the agonizing history of recycled hate.
Emil Guillermo is a journalist and commentator. He’s a veteran Bay Area media person and a
former host of NPR’s “All Things Considered.” Go to his blog at www.amok.com for an
interview with Oakland playwright Ishmael Reed about Reed’s new play on the exploitation of
Jean-Michel Basquiat.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of May 14 – 20, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 14 – 20, 2025
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Activism
The Best Advice for Raising Children: Discipline That Makes Sense
In his book Developing Positive Self Images and Discipline in Black Children, Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu suggests that primary aims for socializing Black children should be: establishing goals related to God and the church; familiarizing children with religious texts like the Bible or Quran; educating them of Black culture like Khemetic (Egyptian) Civilization; enlightening them about Black leaders like Malcolm X and Sojourner Truth; and teaching them to strive to be employers, not employees.
By William A. Thomas, Ph.D.
In many African societies, the primary aim of socialization is to raise children to be socially responsible and eventually provide economic support to their parents and extended families. Ghanaian philosopher Kwame Gyekye taught that children are raised to be respectful of the wishes of their parents and extended adult family members.
In his book Developing Positive Self Images and Discipline in Black Children, Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu suggests that primary aims for socializing Black children should be: establishing goals related to God and the church; familiarizing children with religious texts like the Bible or Quran; educating them of Black culture like Khemetic (Egyptian) Civilization; enlightening them about Black leaders like Malcolm X and Sojourner Truth; and teaching them to strive to be employers, not employees.
Effective disciplinary strategies appropriate to a child’s age and development teach them to regulate their behavior; keep them from harm; enhance their cognitive, social, and emotional executive functioning skills; and reinforce the behavioral patterns taught by their parents and caregivers.
Below are some specific guidelines for disciplining children.
Listen to what children are talking about with interest and show them you understand their feelings. Remember, children mirror and learn about their emotional selves by hearing their feelings reflected back to them. Staying on target also means avoiding labels. When children fail to do what is expected, discussing it is helpful rather than saying how stubborn, lazy, dumb, or bad they are. By the same token, more positive labels can be helpful.
Dependability is another essential component of the discipline process. When parents are dependable, their children learn what to expect and are helped to feel secure. When parents are consistent, children learn to trust, that is, predict their parents’ behaviors with certainty. A child thinks, “When I spill something, I will always be asked to wipe it up.” A child thinks, “If I use foul language, I will always be corrected.” A child thinks, “If I take something that doesn’t belong to me, I will always have to give it back.” The ability to predict with certainty leads children to rely on their parents and the village/community in which they live. Children feel safe when they know what to expect.
Conclusions
It takes a village/community to raise the divine gift that is the Black child. Parents look to therapists for guidance concerning a variety of parenting issues, including discipline. Keep in mind that evidence suggests that corporal punishment is both ineffective in the long term and associated with cognitive and mental health disorders. When parents want guidance about the use of spanking, a child therapist can explore parental feelings, help them better define the goals of discipline, and offer specific behavior management strategies. In addition to providing appropriate education to families, the Bay Area Association of Black Psychologists (Bay ABPsi) can refer them to community resources, like parenting groups and classes.
About the Author
Dr. Thomas is a licensed clinical psychologist with a private practice in the SF/Oakland Bay Area and Beaumont. He is a member of Bay ABPsi, a healing resource committed to providing the Post Newspaper readership with monthly discussions about critical issues in Black Mental Health. Readers are welcome to join us at our monthly chapter meetings every 3rd Saturday via Zoom and contact us at bayareaabpsi@gmail.com.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of May 7 – 13, 2025
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 7 – 13, 2025
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Oakland Post: Week of May 14 – 20, 2025
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