Stop AAPI Hate

This Asian American & Pacific Islander Heritage Month, we're harnessing stories of hope from AA/PI communities, both past and present, to fuel the fight for racial justice. Introducing #SpreadAAPILove, a project by Stop AAPI Hate 💌 Visit spreadaapilove.org to share your story. Thank you to David Rasavong (Love & Thai), Mai Bui (Nguoi Viet Channel), Sunayana Dumala (Forever Welcome Foundation), and Tiana Liufau (Nonosina Polynesian Dance Studio) for allowing us to share your stories with the world — and to RAKISH, CALL ME AL, and all of the talented hands that helped us bring this video to life. To view the full credits, visit our YouTube channel. ➡️ https://lnkd.in/d55yKAn3

After reading all 900+ pages of #Project2025, we learned how it would endanger Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, and other marginalized communities. From attacks on our civil rights protections to the deportation of millions of immigrants and cuts to critical resources for working families, Project 2025 will create a political climate in which none of us feel safe or welcome. 🔗 Read our analysis at https://lnkd.in/gkR4q3Wf

We are heartbroken and sickened by the police killing of 16-year-old American Samoan Easter Leafa last week in Anchorage, Alaska. Her life was unjustly cut short by police just as she was set to start her junior year of high school. Police were called to the home on August 13 during an argument between Easter and her older sister. By the time they arrived, Easter was alone on the back porch with the screen door closed. Her family said she did not pose an immediate threat but officers nevertheless approached aggressively with their guns drawn, making no effort to assess the situation. Easter’s family believed they could convince her to drop a knife she was holding while sitting down. They were also concerned about police approaching Easter because she had recently immigrated to the U.S. and her English was not strong. But police ignored their pleas to allow the family to de-escalate the situation and instead opened the porch door, approached her at close range, and shot her multiple times. What happened to Easter Leafa was a failure by law enforcement to de-escalate a situation that did not need to end so violently. It’s also part of a disturbing pattern. The latest data shows that Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders face the highest rate of police violence. However, systemic failures in policing harm not just Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders but also communities of all backgrounds..Just weeks before officers in Anchorage killed Easter Leafa, officers in Fort Lee, New Jersey killed Korean American Victoria Lee while she was in a mental health crisis. In both cases, police forced their way towards the victims even though their families tried to stop the officers. And in both cases, police did not prioritize de-escalation and non-lethal tools. And we cannot forget all the other people who police have killed unjustly this year, including Yong Yang of Los Angeles, CA; Sonya Massey of Springfield, IL; Win Rozario of Queens, NY; Roger Fortson of Okaloosa County, FL; and too many more. As we mourn Easter, we are joining local Samoan communities in calling for a full investigation into her killing — including the release of unedited body camera footage and additional investments in in-language and culturally-responsive approaches to community safety. To join us in demanding justice for Easter and her loved ones, visit https://lnkd.in/gpD9gnWY. --- Citation: Campaign Zero. (n.d.). Police killings per 1 million people in the U.S., 2013–2024. Mapping police violence. mappingpoliceviolence.org

As leaders attempt to revive harmful narratives of a so-called Chinese "invasion" at the southern border, we are seeing an unsettling repeat of some of the darkest chapters in U.S. history. The US has a long legacy of wrongfully scapegoating Chinese communities as a threat to national security — just because of where they come from. From the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 to the 2018 China Initiative, read more from TIME Magazine about how “yellow peril” has led to the discrimination and dehumanization of generations of Chinese and other Asian communities: https://lnkd.in/g_fGkq3U

Body camera footage released today by the Fort Lee Police Department has confirmed our worst fears: that the killing of 25 year old Korean American Victoria Lee was unjust and unwarranted. She is one of at least 10 AAPIs killed by police just this year alone. 📣 Sign our petition with AAPI New Jersey to demand a thorough investigation, investment in mental health resources, and new protocols to reduce unnecessary police involvement: https://lnkd.in/gHRVbciS

Our coalition is heartbroken by the police shooting of Victoria Lee and alarmed about the broader threat of police violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders — including individuals in the middle of a mental health crisis. Read our full statement below. #StopAAPIHate

Maui is on our mind today as we reflect on the first anniversary of the wildfires that devastated the island. Click the images below to learn about the ongoing challenges Maui’s Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, and immigrant communities are facing and to explore ways you can support. #lahainastrong #mauistrong #mauihawaii

Today marks the 12 year anniversary of the worst act of anti-Sikh hate in U.S. history: the 2012 mass shooting at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin. We mourn the seven victims who ultimately lost their lives due to this attack – Paramjit Kaur Saini, Sita Singh, Ranjit Singh, Prakash Singh, Suveg Singh Khattra, Satwant Singh Kaleka, and Baba Punjab Singh – and honor the resilience of Sikh communities in the face of hate. At Stop AAPI Hate, we believe no one should live in fear because of who they are or where they worship. To create safer communities for all, we will continue to fight for #GunViolencePrevention and confront the rise of racism and white supremacy — which motivated this deadly attack. #RememberOakCreek 📸 Photo Courtesy of the Sikh Coalition

🌟 “Growing up as an Indian American girl in Alabama, I didn’t see a lot of people who looked like me…Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined what would happen in my lifetime.” - Stop AAPI Hate co-founder Manjusha P. Kulkarni on increasing South Asian representation in U.S. politics. Read our July newsletter to learn how we’re building political power across  AAPI communities, pushing back against hate in the news, on social media, and more. ⬇️

From Usha Vance to Vice President Kamala Harris, South Asian women are taking center stage in U.S. politics. Their prominence is on the rise, and unfortunately, so are hateful attacks on their identities. 📰 Read more in Politico about the impact of the model minority myth, and why we’re urging everyone to report harmful rhetoric impacting Asians in the U.S. ⬇️ https://lnkd.in/ggKEUdMx