Movement against violence targeting Asian-Americans
Stop Asian Hate is a slogan and name of a series of demonstrations, protests, and rallies against violence against Asians, Asian Americans, and others of Asian descent. They were held across the United States in 2021 in response to racial discrimination against Asian Americans relating to the COVID-19 pandemic.[1]
Many rallies occurred in the wake of a mass shooting that occurred at three Atlanta spas in which eight people were killed, six of whom were women of Asian descent. However, the movement first began to gain traction after the killing of Vicha Ratanapakdee nearly two months earlier.
Background
The COVID-19 pandemic, which was first reported in the city of Wuhan, in the Hubei province of China, has led to a perceived increase in racism against Asians and Asian Americans. According to the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino[2] and Stop AAPI Hate, there has been an increase in crimes against Asians since 2019. For instance, the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism reported that hate crimes against Asians increased by 150% in 2020, and Stop AAPI Hate received 3,795 discriminatory incident reports in the first year of the pandemic.[3][4][5] Research from the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism further found that anti-Asian hate crimes rose by 339% in 2021, when compared to 2020,[6] while police in San Francisco reported a 567% increase in anti-Asian hate crimes that year.[7]
A Pew Research study found that 58% of Asian Americans believed that racist views had increased towards them during the pandemic.[8] Along with this, 45% of Asian American adults say they have experienced at least one of five specific offensive incidents since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.[9] A study by the New York University College of Arts & Science found that there was no overall increase of Anti-Asian sentiment among the American population; instead, it suggested that "already prejudiced persons" had felt authorized by the pandemic to act openly on their prejudices.[10]
On March 16, 2021, a mass shooting occurred at three spas in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Although the shooter has not been charged with a hate crime, a significant number of commentators have characterized it as such, as of the eight people killed, six were women of Asian descent,[11] and the shootings also took place at businesses with a high percentage of staff members of Asian descent.[12] According to police, the shooter said he committed those murders because of a conflict between his sex addiction and religious beliefs.[13][14]
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