Art 3170 Asian Hate Crimes and Covid-19

What is Covid-19?

    Covid-19 is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus. At first, people would show only common respiratory problems and not treat them because it doesn't seem harmful. However, the Coronavirus is a more serious issue. Especially in the elderly and with weak immune systems the virus can cause real damage. The best way to protect yourself and others is to stay six feet away from each other and wear masks to cover bodily fluids from spreading. Practice safety precautions and get the vaccine.

Asian Hate Crime Has Risen as Covid-19 gets worse

    Recent racially-motivated violence against Asian Americans, such as the March 2021 Atlanta spa shootings, which murdered eight people, including six Asian women, has heightened the urgency of attempts to preserve their health and safety following the COVID-19 pandemic. "This article uses national public opinion data to document the extent of violence and racism experienced by Asian Americans nationally during the pandemic and suggests a path forward" (Health Affairs,2022).

    Hate crimes against Asian Americans living in the United States increased by 77 percent from 2019 to 2020, according to the FBI. More than 9,000 anti-Asian hate incidents were self-reported to the campaign group Stop AAPI Hate between March 2020 and June 2021. However, such data are almost certainly underreported. Meanwhile, significant research gaps obstruct a more comprehensive knowledge of the violence and bigotry that plague the Asian American population.

Before March 2020

After a 77% increase

    How Violence Affected the Asians During Covid-19

    

    A strong proportion of Asian Americans (82 percent) feel that the coronavirus pandemic in our country has resulted in discrimination against Asian Americans as a group. Seventy percent believe prejudice is a greater threat now than it was before the COVID-19 outbreak. Nearly two-thirds of Asian Americans (64%) believe racism is an extremely or very serious problem in the United States, while about half (53%) believe Asian Americans endure a lot or a lot of discrimination in the United States today.

    Furthermore, more than half of Asian Americans (57%) say they feel unsafe in public because of their race or ethnicity on a regular or irregular basis; only 12% say they never feel unsafe in public. Most Asian Americans (81%) believe that violence against Asian Americans is on the rise, and 73 percent believe that violence is a greater threat now than it was before the pandemic. Furthermore, one-quarter (25%) to one-third (32%) of Asian Americans have expressed personal concerns that someone would harm or physically attack them or their family members because of their race or ethnicity. During Covid-19, 39 percent of Asian Americans reported racist crimes, a 9% rise compared to before the pandemic. An identical share (39 percent) say people have acted uncomfortable around them due to their race or ethnicity since COVID-19 began. And within the first time period of the pandemic alone, one in seven Asian Americans reported experiencing discrimination, threats, or unfair treatment by others fearing they may have coronavirus when actual COVID-19 cases weren't higher among Asian Americans compared to other racial/ethnic groups.

My Experience

    Although it is not needed to get so personal with this topic, my experience to me is a perfect example of Asian Hate Crime. This is back in 2020 or 2021 when Covid was at a peak. I was on the bus with my dad and we were going to Ralphs. It was a full bus, mainly of Latinos because of the neighborhood. As we approached our stop I went towards the exit which happen to be there a Black woman who appeared homeless. As I kept walking toward the exit, the woman out of nowhere screams "Get away from me!" "Stay six feet away!" At first, I was shocked because I was never told this before. The woman's outcries were stupid, like how do you expect me to get off the bus and six feet apart? Then the woman started throwing racial slurs and screaming even more. We managed to leave and a few days later I heard that the same woman was arrested for misconduct and verbal assault. She even attacked the bus driver when the bus driver told her to behave. This was one of the days I will never forget.

    This is important because this is an example of racism and one way Covid has added to the damage that Asian Americans can receive through these hate crimes even though they have not done anything wrong. This brings awareness to the fact that race shouldn't be a reason to hate someone and cause harm to them.

Sources

    Findling, Mary, et al. “Covid-19 Has Driven Racism and Violence against Asian Americans: Perspectives from 12 National Polls: Health Affairs Forefront.” Health Affairs, 12 Apr. 2022, https://www.healthaffairs.org/do/10.1377/forefront.20220411.655787.

    Nationaltrackingpoll#210639 June07-22,2021 Crosstabulationresults - Politico.com. https://www.politico.com/f/?id=0000017c-27d8-dddc-a77e-27db16040000.

    “2020 FBI Hate Crimes Statistics.” The United States Department of Justice, 9 Dec. 2021, https://www.justice.gov/crs/highlights/2020-hate-crimes-statistics.

    “Coronavirus.” World Health Organization, World Health Organization, https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1.