Why Asian Americans Have to Show Up for Black Lives
The cost to murder an Asian American in 1982 was $3,000. How African American Civil Rights leaders showed up for Asian American Civil Rights in the 80s and what today’s generation needs to carry forward.
There was a time, not too long ago, that Asian and African Americans fought for each other, against each other, and for each other again. However, as the memory of those lessons start to fade, Asian Americans today have a duty to come to terms with those lessons and show up against anti-Black racism. In this story, I share my opinion on why there is a need and how some can get started through the lens of a PBS documentary that opened my mind to the issues.
Just to be clear, everyone has a duty to step up. However, as a first-generation Korean American, I write this story as an open letter primarily directed to the Asian American community that I’ve grown up with.
Realizing I Know Nothing
As I observed the George Floyd protests and the Black Lives Matter movement evolve in the Spring and Summer of 2020, I started to wonder about my own identity as a first-generation Korean American. More specifically, there was a part of me that knew I had to support the movement — after all, I am a minority in America — however, I came to the realization that I did not understand…
