The COVID-19 outbreak has proved challenging, bringing about a variety of unknowns and uncertainties around the world. Recently, we've seen an increase in discrimination, harassment, and violence against those of Asian ethnicities. Some have been beaten and assaulted for simply wearing masks. Some are being spit on and harassed in the street. In fact, some of our own Unicorns have experienced similar acts of xenophobia since the outbreak started. 

However, for every act of hate we’ve also seen countless acts of humanity. Near and far, there are stories of selflessness, kindness, and connection. Which is why we believe in everyone’s ability to do their part in stopping the spread of xenophobia and standing up to hate.

As your leads from Asians in Motion and Perspectives, we seek to provide guidance, support, and perspectives of our culture and backgrounds, and we felt it necessary to address this negativity and give you some ways you can help.

What you can do:

1. Speak up: It helps victims psychologically when you speak up, defend them, and/or condemn attackers and bullies. Don’t escalate confrontations needlessly, but make it known you stand with the victim and help them feel safe. Check out this one-pager on bystander intervention for more information.

2. Report: Many hate crimes go unreported by victims which only exacerbates the problem and occurrence. You can help by reporting them via the contacts below:

• New York: Civil.Rights@ag.ny.gov | 1-800-771-7755
• Chicago: 877-581-3692 | 
• Boston: 1-800-994-3228
• San Francisco: (415) 551-9595
• Atlanta: (404) 612-4981
• Seattle: (206) 553-7970
• Los Angeles: (213) 974-3512
• Detroit: (313) 965-2323 

3. Check in: It’s possible you already know a victim who hasn’t spoken out. Reach out to those around you to check in with them and ask how they are feeling from time to time. You never know what someone else may be going through.

4. Be mindful: Remember that it’s still possible to cause harm in inadvertent ways. Choose your words carefully and help others do the same. Avoid making jokes at the expense of someone’s ethnicity, or making comments that only perpetuate a lesser-than treatment of Asians (like calling COVID-19 the “Chinese Virus / Kung Flu / etc.”)

As we continue through each day, know that we are here for you. If you’ve experienced any discrimination, want to talk about it, or have ideas for community growth, please reach out to us on Teams, Skype, or email. You can also utilize the counseling benefits through our Employee Assistance Program. Remember that while we can’t always control what happens, we can always choose how we respond.

Signed,

AIM NYC – Daisy Sun & Brandon Ma

AIM Chi – Sally Lau & Joanne Huang

Perspectives Bos – Melanie Liu & Alexander Le

Perspectives SF – Sammie Legaspi & Danisha Lomax