Is Recognizing Racism the New Normal
red
orange yellow green blue
indigo and violet these colors of a
rainfall
are beautiful to see aren’t they
each color is vastly different and
somehow
perfectly unified in the same glorious
show of life
these differences are what make up all
the beauty appearance
this represents the diversity of
different races across the world
each color is what makes us unique
during the copen 19 pandemic the world
turned upside down
in more ways than one adjusting to the
so-called new normal was no easy feat
for people of
all walks of life whenever things seemed
to look up i pointed my remote control
at the tv
and was proven wrong time and again
but something that shook me to my core
happened earlier this year in february
just after the time coca 19 has
celebrated its first birthday
i read the news of mr rishab
an 84 year old thai man in san francisco
was taking a walk when he was
violently shoved to the ground and he
died
shortly afterwards
imagine your grandfather taking a walk
in his neighborhood
in broad daylight and you having to hold
your breath
not knowing if it will be the last time
you get to see
him this is not
a one-off incident between 2019 and 2020
there have been a 150 percent
increase in asian hate crimes in america
including a 109-fold increase in new
york city
according to statistical.com there were
250 incidents of asian racism
in each of the first two months of 2021
alone
however this numbers are not just the
whole number that are actually being
reported
so
although the thing is this wave of
discrimination that we see happening to
asians
during this pandemic is by no means a
new normal
asian stereotypes have always been
exacerbated in media and in films
even from a young age the roles of
asians
as nerdy or crazy people who can’t
pronounce the letter are
or conversely the perception of asians
as a model minority
all contribute to the overall
degradation of the community
that in terms of crisis leads to clear
and dangerous
division but
why is it that we see asian movements
emerging
this time even when asians have
constantly been mistreated
asian racism is a very real thing yet it
has barely ever been put into the
spotlight before
that’s when it hit me the reason that we
don’t see
these asian movements and protests is
because in our culture
we are often taught to obey authority
and keep our voices quiet
we are the type of people who sit at the
back of the classrooms trying to take in
things that we can tolerate
so as to not inconvenience others
we were taught that when bad things
happen it’s better to be
quiet than speak out because collective
rights are more important
than individual rights
another question that came up was that
is it just america where all of this has
been happening
or has it always been common for the
majority
to target and discriminate against the
minority
in order to answer this question the
best nation i could look into
was my own come to think of it what
about
thailand my initial thought
there’s no really such a thing as racism
where
i’ve lived where people are physically
attacked for the color of their skin
right well when i got right down to it
even here in thailand we see the
majority group oppress and degrade
others we don’t truly deem as equals
you might have heard of the second
pandemic wave here in thailand
and in actuality migrant workers from
myanmar
are being the targets of blame and
accusation with some blame the entire
country
for this search for corporate cases
both of these countries are asian in
fact they’re right next to each other in
terms of geography
however i still see that these people
are not seen as equals
in the eyes of many with some going
online and commenting things like
whenever you see myanmar people shoot
them down
timeless hate speech triggered
discrimination during these desperate
times just like what’s been making the
headlines in america
looking at all this i was ashamed that i
could shield it from this for the
longest time
that i could see discrimination happened
in a nation thousands of miles away from
me
but not recognize what’s happening in my
law
but there are ways to change things up
and i do believe there is hope
we see people of all races and
backgrounds come together
in times of need to just groups offering
to walk asian american seniors in
oakland who are afraid of going out
alone
people have been voicing their concern
and support for movement
in organizations such as stop api hate
and asian americans advancing justice
racism has always been there
it is not a new normal
recognize and acting upon it however
should be our new normal
in order to continue the work being done
and create long-term changes however
there are a few things we need to start
off with
first of all awareness for this issue
should be widespread
recognizing that racism happens may lead
to a zone of destruction especially
where you are
but it’s nevertheless something that
must be addressed
in concrete steps the youth have to be
involved it should be the responsibility
of parents
to teach their children from a young age
about the interconnectedness of all
races
so that and bring them to know that
people are not just from just the color
of their skin but for who they truly are
as a human being in the greater world
teachers and educational systems
likewise should teach about
the importance of acceptance of other
races so that these children
who grow to be adults will not only be
aware of this issue
but seek for constant improvement and
the eradication of it
all together lastly
social media is simply a swipe of a
figure
in this world where this form of
communication exchange is easily
accessible and widespread
we can use this as a driving force
against the prejudices in which we
weren’t able to speak out against before
as asians i invite you to speak up
be a part of this movement and keep the
momentum going
the future of this new normal relies on
us
off
red orange yellow
green blue indigo and violence
ladies and gentlemen just like the scene
that’s harming these colors
let’s come to see the beauty of that
rainbow in humanity
together thank you
[Applause]