As someone from the Asian diaspora, there is a sense of particularly lasting enragement when confronted with Trump.
He escalated a climate that reminded me of stories my parents told me about their early time in the U.S. and the harsh obstacles they faced. I experienced again the overt
anti-Asian bullying and racism I experienced as a child.
He weaponized the pandemic. Discouraged people from getting vaccines, wearing masks, and from practicing measures to care for each others’ health.
Over 1 million died from Covid in the U.S., a number that could have been much smaller. And because of the flippancy he created, more continue to suffer now as well.
Asians were being physically and violently attacked on a regular basis, including our most cherished elders.
More Asians started going to self-defense classes, picking up safety supply kits with mace in them. And there has even been an increase in gun purchases by Asian communities.
Navigating the world before he came into power of course already had pre-existing racism. But when he was given the podium, what it means to be perceived as Asian in the U.S. changed permanently.
He told a story of fear, peddled the white supremacy myth, and built a war against an entire people.
But as we know, none of this is new.
But as is a part of our Asian diasporic cultures, we leaned into our communities and interdependence.
Mutual aid efforts grew thicker and stronger, our emergency contingency plans became clearer, the complexities and vastness of the diaspora became more understood, and many of us became more unified.
One person can poison many people, as we have witnessed time and time again.
Fortunately for us, the Asian Pacific Islander diaspora we speak of is where we can truly embrace Pacific Islanders, Native Hawaiians, Southeast, Desi South, West, and East Asians.
But we have to truly embrace all of us, family.
Let us be truly a unified diaspora.
That means fighting supremacy, colorism, classism, and jingoism within our communities as well, especially within and by my fellow East Asian communities.
We have so much work to do, but we cannot fight oppression unless we actually do that work and strengthen our interdependence.
People power wins over individualism any day.
As a diaspora, we are on the brink of major shifts and decisions. Let us make the choices that get us to liberation. All of us or none of us.
That is our only option.
Interdependence.
To get there together.
I love us. Let’s go.
Comments are closed.