The New York State Young Democrats (NYSYD) stand with our Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) members and community against anti-AAPI hate crimes. While these incidents are not exclusive to the pandemic, violent attacks on individuals, especially Asian elders, vandalism of businesses, racial epithets shouted by strangers, and more have plagued the lives of AAPI individuals throughout the country over the last year. Since the beginning of COVID, there has been a 1900% increase in hate crimes against AAPI throughout the country. The latest of which ended the lives of 8 people, 6 of whom were women, in Atlanta, GA just yesterday.
This xenophobic behavior is a remnant of our country’s racist history and a trait of the worst of our society. It must be stopped. We call on everyone to do their part in protecting our AAPI members, neighbors, friends, & family using the intervention links below. We can #StopAsianHate together.
In addition to the physical effects of these hate crimes, we acknowledge this additionally takes a toll on one’s mental health whether they were a victim or not. To anyone who has been directly or indirectly affected by AAPI Hate Crimes, we encourage you to speak up and speak out about your experience. You are not alone and there are many avenues of support available to you, some of which have been linked below. NYSYD stands with you against this hate and with our AAPI community.
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STOP AAPI HATE – A research center dedicated to documenting anti-Asian hate incidents, providing resources for victims, & advocating for policies to reinforce human and civil rights protections
National Asian Pacific American Bar Association Hate Crime Resources – Legal resources, advocacy groups, statistics, toolkits, trainings, & more courtesy of the NAPABA
Asian Mental Health Collective Therapist Directory – List of Asian Mental Health Professionals in New York State
Hollaback! Bystander Intervention Training – Bystander Intervention Training session in conjunction with Asian Americans Advancing for Justice (AAJC)
NAPAWF NYC – COVID Racist Harassment Coping Guide – A guide to caring for oneself before, during, and after an incident of harassment developed by the NYC chapter of the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
Detox Local – An extensive list of mental health and substance use resources specifically for the AAPI (American Asian and Pacific Islander) community.