By Maha Rauf
I. THE ATLANTA SHOOTING
“Asian is not a virus. Racism is.”
“I did not make you sick.”
“I am not your scapegoat.”
“I am not an exotic fantasy.”
These messages have been angrily sprawled across the walls of subway stations, bus stops, streets, alleys, and on protest signs by activists in the U.S, and across the globe,[1] in the wake of the horrific Atlanta shootings which resulted in the murder of eight people, including six Asian women.
The shootings took place at three massage parlours, owned and run by Asian women, in metropolitan Atlanta and the neighbouring Cherokee county.[2] The perpetrator of the attack, Robert Aaron Long, a 21-year-old white man from Woodstock Georgia, legally purchased a 9mm handgun just a few hours before he attended the crime scenes where he proceeded to shoot “at everyone he saw”.[3]
His victims were Delaina Ashley Yaun, aged 33; Paul Andre Michels, 54; Xiaojie Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44. Julie Park, 74, Yong A. Yue, 63, and Suncha Kim, 69. Long was initially charged with eight counts of homicide and one count of aggravated assault in the Cherokee County, but the attack was not deemed a hate crime.[4] On the 11th of March 2021, Long received a 23-count indictment on charges of malice murder, felony murder, attempt to commit murder, and aggravated assault from a grand jury in Cherokee County.[5] Grand jurors in Fulton County also indicted Long on one charge of domestic terrorism. [6]
During a discussion about the tragic and horrifying nature of the incident at a news conference, Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office spokesman, Captain Jay Baker, said that the assailant “was pretty much fed up and had been kind of at the end of his rope”. He stated that it was simply “a really bad day for him, and this is what he did.”[7]
It is clear that the brutal and inhumane killing of a minority group is not the result of being “fed up”. It is not the result of having a “bad day”. It is the result of racism; deep-rooted, structural, long festering and murderous racism.
Long was a patron of two of the three massage parlours and explained his behaviour to the police as being the result of a “sex addiction” that conflicted with his religious beliefs. He viewed the massage parlours as sources of sexual temptation and sought to eradicate them to “help” others also afflicted with a ‘sex addiction’.[8] Whilst this is a deeply unsettling and wholly inadequate explanation, it also captures an important dimension of Anti-Asian racism: the hyper sexualization of Asian woman and the model minority myth.
II. THE NATURE OF ANTI-ASIAN RACISM
Throughout history, Asian women have been relentlessly fetishized, stereotyped, belittled, and cast as exotic outsiders. This trope of the hypersexual and docile Asian woman spans centuries; there were once attempts to ban Chinese women from entering the US for fear that they were prostitutes that would ‘corrupt’ society, and an entire pornographic industry was dedicated to eroticising war brides after the Korean war.[9] Not long ago, a plethora of films and artworks, such as critically acclaimed Miss Saigon and Madame Butterfly, concretised these narratives, reinforcing and perpetuating them in the public eye. In 2013, a study revealed that Asian women are still considered the most fetishized racial group amongst men.[10] Asian women continue to be rendered the ‘model minority’; hardworking but submissive, servile, and compliant - even subhuman. And that is exactly how Long viewed them as well. Not as people, but as temptations to be exploited and eliminated.
Hate crimes against East Asian communities have drastically increased by an estimated 150% since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.[11] Between March 2020 and February 2021, there have been nearly 3,800 anti-Asian hate incidents reported in the U.S. alone.[12] In February, an 84-year-old Thai man died after he was violently thrown to the ground in Chinatown in Oakland, California.[13] In March, a 65-year-old Filipino woman was assaulted on the streets of New York by a man who repeatedly kicked and stomped on her, in front of witnesses who were revealed by surveillance footage to have simply stood by and watched. [14]
In Australia, Asian communities and international students have also been largely blamed for the national duress caused by the pandemic. A survey revealed that 84.5% of Asian Australians have faced discrimination in the past year.[15] Both the Australian Asian Alliance and the Australian Human Rights Commission have received reports of physical and verbal abuse – in the streets, shops, public transport and elsewhere. In addition, there have been incidents of racist graffiti and vandalism of the homes of Asian-Australians.[16] A 19-year-old Sydney-based Vietnamese girl recently reported being threatened with a knife, spat on, called an “Asian slut and an Asian dog” and told to “go eat a bat.” [17]
Much of the rhetoric around this issue has described these attacks and hate crimes as “shocking”, “extraordinary” and “senseless” – as if this kind of violence is not already grounded in the reality we inhabit. As if Asian communities have not already been excluded, alienated, persecuted, and hemmed in by Eurocentric prejudice. As if this tragedy is anomalous, and not the wreckage of a train that has been careening down the track for years.
From the Chinese Massacre of 1871, to the Page Act of 1875 and Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, to forced Japanese Internment during World War II, history is rife with instances of anti-Asian racism – it is anything but novel and anomalous.[18] In the Western world, it has long been enmeshed with American nationalist, and imperialist rhetoric. In the 1904 World’s Fair, Filipinos were displayed as ‘savages.’[19] During the Korean War, the US dropped 635,000 tons of bombs over Korea, completely levelling it.[20] From 1964 to 1973, the US dropped 2 million tonnes of bombs over Laos, making it the most heavily bombed nation in history.[21] What is happening now is merely an extension of the long history of anti-Asian violence experienced, and of the dehumanisation of Asian people stemming from the US military conquest in the Asia Pacific.
III. ANTI-ASIAN RACISM IN POST-PANDEMIC TIMES
The idea of East Asians as ‘disease-carrying invaders’ dates back to the 1870’s, introduced in response to the displacement of white workers by Chinese immigrants, and used to justify the codification of xenophobia.[22] In the 19th century, China was labelled the “sick man of Asia”.[23] In the wake of this history, the former US President, Donald Trump’s infamous misnomer of COVID-19 as the “Kung Flu” cannot be seen as simply an insensitive and problematic pun.[24] It is a battle cry to reinvigorate deep-seated bigotry.
However, condemnation of this bigotry has been swift. The rise of post-pandemic Asian-American racism and the Atlanta shootings have sparked considerable outrage across the globe, and thousands of people have participated in ‘Stop AAPI hate’ rallies and marches over the last few months.[25] Under the new Biden administration, the White House announced in March that the government would be focusing on Asian-American racism, outlining a plan of action that included federal, state, and local law enforcement training on handling hate crimes. It was also announced that a committee would be established within the COVID-19 Equity Task Force to address anti-Asian xenophobia, and $49.5 million allocated to fund community-based services for Asian or Pacific Islander survivors of sexual and domestic violence.[26]
In Australia, the Prime Minister condemned the racism levelled against Asian Australians at the onset of the pandemic, pointing out that it was in fact Asian Australians that led the country’s largely successful response to the pandemic.[27]
However, the criticism and denunciation of racism is not even close to being enough to remedy the damage caused by centuries of systematic dehumanisation. Popular slogan ‘Stop Asian Hate’ is, in many ways, a reductive and toothless demand that likens racism to interpersonal conflict and individual feeling. It suggests that we route our confrontation of this issue towards more idealist solutions, such as ‘representation’ and ‘awareness’. But we need more than just education, diversity panels, kind words and platitudes. We need to challenge the ruling class that profits from this violence and dismantle the structures that prop up xenophobia.
It is important that each of us listen to the immediately impacted communities on the ground and honour their wishes. It is important for us to provide crisis prevention resources, to sign collective community statements, donate to victims, debunk false narratives that propagate stereotypes, and share resources such as language translation, mental health services, legal services, childcare, and food services. It is important to actively call out racially motivated abuse, whether it be major hate crime or a simple instance of microaggression. It is important to advocate for and ally ourselves with Asian communities. Anything short of this is a gross miscarriage of justice and a failure to protect Asian communities.
There is no room to discuss or write about this issue that relies on any sense of anomaly and triviality. The truth about anti-Asian racism is that it is not uncommon, or trivial. It is entrenched in every corner of the world and it is deeply dangerous. The pain of Asian communities is not decorative. The exploitation of their labour is not flattery, and the scapegoating of their ethnicity is not acceptable.
We are living in a time of major racial reckonings. Waves of wide-spread activism are finally emerging, and culture rattling rage is bubbling up to the surface. The long-maintained bedrock of racism is, at last, coming apart at the seams. We must now acknowledge the ugly reality and unpleasant history of anti-Asian racism. We must now focus our energies on bringing about second order change. We cannot afford to look away any longer.
[1] Lauren Messman, ''I Still Believe in Our City': A Public Art Series Takes On Racism', The New York Times (online, 02 November 2020) <https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/02/arts/design/public-art-covid-race-subway.html>.
[2] Mayank Aggarwal, 'Atlanta spa shootings: What we know about 'religious, nerdy' suspect Robert Aaron Long', The Independent (online, 17 March 2021) <https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/atlanta-shootings-robert-aaron-long-b1818247.html>.
[3] Alexis Stevens and Shaddi Abusaid, ''A crime against us all.' Outrage, grief after deadly spa shootings', The Atlanta Journal Constitution (online, 18 March 2021) https://www.ajc.com/news/exclusive-spa-shooting-suspect-bought-gun-hours-before-deadly-spree/FEURWVYBEFBMJP7GLOQ6AQJ27A/; Hanna Park, 'He shot at 'everyone he saw': Atlanta spa workers recount horrors of shooting' NBC News (online, 3 April 2021) <https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/he-shot-everyone-he-saw-atlanta-spa-workers-recount-horrors-n1262928>.
[4] 'Why Atlanta spa shootings are not being classified as a hate crime', NBC News (NBC), 2021 <https://www.nbcnews.com/now/video/why-atlanta-spa-shootings-are-not-being-classified-as-a-hate-crime-108919365640>.
[5] Kate Brumback, ‘Prosecutor plans to seek death penalty in spa shootings’ AP NEWS (online, 12 May 2021) <https://apnews.com/article/lifestyle-spas-massage-business-shootings-shootings-8b4fa8d0217180eef6f02111d5354345>
[6] Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs, ‘Atlanta Spa Shooting Were Hate Crimes, Prosecutor Says’ The New York Times (online, 11 May 2021) <https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/11/us/atlanta-spa-shootings-hate-crimes.html?action=click&module=In%20Other%20News&pgtype=Homepage>
[7] Meryl Kornfield and Hannah Knowles, 'Captain who said spa shootings suspect had 'bad day' no longer a spokesman on case, official says', The Washington Post (online, 19 March 2021) <https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2021/03/17/jay-baker-bad-day/>.
[8] Lindsay Whitehurst and Michelle Price, 'Stigma on race, gender and sex overlap in Atlanta slayings', AP News (online, 19 March 2021) <https://apnews.com/article/us-news-race-and-ethnicity-shootings-las-vegas-mass-shooting-georgia-58690b8fd13adc6e76ef2b306fd2c58f>.
[9] Rachel Ramirez, 'The history of fetishizing Asian women', Vox (online, 19 March 2021) <https://www.vox.com/22338807/asian-fetish-racism-atlanta-shooting>.
[10] Ritchie King, 'The uncomfortable racial preferences revealed by online dating', Quartz (online, 21 November 2013) <https://qz.com/149342/the-uncomfortable-racial-preferences-revealed-by-online-dating/>.
[11] Kimmy Yam, “Anti-Asian hate crimes increased by nearly 150% in 2020, mostly in N.Y. and L.A., new report says”, NBC News (online, 20 March 2021) <https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/anti-asian-hate-crimes-increased-nearly-150-2020-mostly-n-n1260264>.
[12] Kimmy Yam, "There Were 3,800 Anti-Asian Racist Incidents, Mostly Against Women, In Past Year", NBC News (online, 17 March 2021) <https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/there-were-3-800-anti-asian-racist-incidents-mostly-against-n1261257>.
[13] Vivian Ho, “After 75-year-old dies from attack, alarm increases in Oakland's Asian community”, The Guardian (online, 13 March 2021) <https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/12/asian-elderly-attack-die-oakland>.
[14] Nicole Hong, Juliana Kim and Ali Watkins, ‘Brutal Attack on Filipino Woman Sparks Outrage: ‘Everybody Is on Edge’, The New York Times (online, 30 March 2021) https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/30/nyregion/asian-attack-nyc.html
[15] Max Walden, “More than eight in 10 Asian Australians report discrimination during coronavirus pandemic”, ABC News (online, 2 November 2020) <https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-11-02/asian-australians-suffer-covid-19-discrimination-anu-survey/12834324>.
[16] "COVID-19 And Hate Crime In Australia", The University Of Sydney (Webpage, 2020) <https://www.sydney.edu.au/law/news-and-events/news/2020/05/07/covid-19-and-hate-crime-in-australia.html>.
[17] Gladys Lai, “Asian Hate Crimes are an Australian Problem, too. When Will it Stop?”, GQ Australia (online, 18 March 2021) <https://www.gq.com.au/success/opinions/asian-hate-crimes-are-an-australian-problem-too-when-will-it-stop/news-story/cf6871220622d1e8d8d35049edb6e720>.
[18] Liz Mineo, “The scapegoating of Asian Americans”, The Harvard Gazette (online, 24 March 2021) <https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2021/03/a-long-history-of-bigotry-against-asian-americans/>.
[19] Michelle Sit, ‘The Filipino ‘exhibit’ at the 1940 St. Louis World’s Fair, Missouri’ (2008) 2 MAI Review.
[20] Eric Talmadge, “64 years after Korean War, North still digging up bombs”, AP News, (online, 24 July 2017) <https://apnews.com/article/dd6256bad51e458cb2e8a1bf64b5c2b6>.
[21] Jessica Pearce Rotondi, “Why Laos Has Been Bombed More Than Any Other Country”, History, (Webpage, 5 December 2019) <https://www.history.com/news/laos-most-bombed-country-vietnam-war>.
[22] Marian Liu, “The coronavirus and the long history of using diseases to justify xenophobia”, The Washington Post, (online, 14 February 2020) <https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/02/14/coronavirus-long-history-blaming-the-other-public-health-crises/>.
[23] Elaine Yau, “China enraged by ‘Sick Man of Asia’ headline, but its origin may surprise many”, South China Morning Post, (online, 27 February 2020) <https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/article/3052434/china-enraged-sick-man-asia-headline-its-origin-may-surprise-many>.
[24] ‘President Trump calls coronavirus ‘kung flu’’, BBC News (Web Page, 24 June 2020) <https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-us-canada-53173436>.
[25] Mary Markos and Kwani A. Lunis, “This is Nothing New’: Stop Asian Hate Protestors, in Their Own Words”, NBC Boston, (online, 5 April 2021) <https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/this-is-nothing-new-stop-asian-hate-protesters-in-their-own-words/2346889/>.
[26] Candice Norwood, “What advocates and lawmakers are doing to address growing anti-Asian hate crimes”, PBS, (online, 1 April 2021) <https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/what-advocates-and-lawmakers-are-doing-to-address-growing-anti-asian-hate-crimes>.
[27] Brett Mason, “Scott Morrison says Asian-Australians led coronavirus response, condemns racist attacks against community”, SBS News, (online, 14 April 2020) <https://www.sbs.com.au/news/scott-morrison-says-asian-australians-led-coronavirus-response-condemns-racist-attacks-against-community>.