NextSharkNextShark.com

Daughter of NYC elderly woman beaten in broad daylight weighs in on new anti-Asian racism film

Daughter of NYC elderly woman beaten in broad daylight weighs in on new anti-Asian racism film

Filmmakers Ronald W. Wong and Tony Shyu document some notorious anti-Asian hate crimes to make headlines in their film “The Race Epidemic.”

F
The film touches on the pattern of U.S. racism against Asians throughout the country’s history and how the COVID-19 pandemic served as the spark for the wave of violence and discrimination against Asians.

A “Viral” History

In “The Race Epidemic,” Immigration Research Center Director Dr. Erika Lee explains how U.S. history has often painted Asians, particularly Chinese migrant workers as “parasites, an invasive population, a plague, an invisible threat like pathogens.”
“Immigrants have been stigmatized for being carriers of dangerous diseases and contagion that are dangerous to Americans,” she said.
One of the most popular 19th-century ads was a “Rough on Rats” poster of a stereotypically drawn Chinese man with his mouth open, ready to swallow a rat whole. The slogan read, “They must go,” a play on the 1886 “The Magic Washer” political cartoon which read, “The Chinese must go.”
Subscribe to
NextShark's Newsletter

A daily dose of Asian America's essential stories, in under 5 minutes.

Get our collection of Asian America's most essential stories to your inbox daily for free.

Unsure? Check out our Newsletter Archive.

Input From An Assault Survivor

“You don’t belong here,” were the words spoken by one anti-Asian hate crime survivor’s attacker.
On March 29 last year, Vilma Kari, a then-65-year-old Filipina American was subjected to anti-Asian remarks, knocked to the ground and stomped on outside a New York City apartment building as she was on her way to church. Her attack made national headlines and spread outrage across social media when the released surveillance footage showed the security men inside who watched and closed the door on her. Vilma suffered harsh injuries to her body and head and a fractured pelvis.
View post on Twitter
After the attack, Vilma’s daughter, Liz, became even more driven to speak out against anti-Asian crimes. When they watched the documentary, they agreed that Americans in general would learn from it.
“It is important to note that the #StopAsianHate movement was highlighted during the pandemic [and] that AAPI have experienced discrimination and hate crimes for decades prior,”  Liz told NextShark. “As documented attacks on AAPI increased substantially during the pandemic, the call for activism to address this issue and provide education is needed more now than ever before.”
The film creates empathy to triumph over feelings of perpetual foreignness and offers solidarity among other people of color, the Karis said. “The more people know about each other, the less they will fear what is different and can hopefully see beyond physical traits and accept each person for who they are as an individual American.”
Liz also believes that the documentary can be used as an educational tool “to help teach the next generation,” following the historical bills recently passed in Illinois and New Jersey, requiring schools to teach AAPI history.
“One message that the video touches on is the idea that AAPI community does not have a clear leader to look up to for encouragement or unity,” she added. “AAPIs don’t always have strong encouragement to speak up, so it is important for films like this to bring about education and the opportunity for self-reflection.”
Learn more about how you can help spread awareness on anti-Asian hate and fight racism by supporting “The Race Epidemic.
The Asian Pacific American Leadership Foundation (APALF), is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, asking readers to help them reach their fundraising goal by donating to their GoFundMe campaign. Funds will support the completion and subsequent national tour of the film, as well as go towards developing anti-bias training for community leaders throughout America. All donations are tax-deductible.
This post was created by NextShark with the Asian Pacific American Leadership Foundation.
Featured Image via @CeFaanKim (left), Good Morning America (right)
MOST READ
    HAPPENING NOW
      Asian Pacific American Leadership Foundation

      Asian Pacific American Leadership Foundation is a contributor at NextShark

      Editorial Staff

      Editorial Staff Follow NextShark on <a>Facebook</a> and <a href="http://www.twitter.com/nextshark">Twitter</a> to keep up-to-date on our posts! Send us tips, press releases, and story ideas to info[at]nextshark[dot]com.

      SHARE THIS ARTICLE:

      RELATED STORIES FROM NEXTSHARK

      Support
      NextShark's
      Journalism

      Many people might not know this, but NextShark is a small media startup that runs on no outside funding or loans, and with no paywalls or subscription fees, we rely on help from our community and readers like you.

      Everything you see today is built by Asians, for Asians to help amplify our voices globally and support each other. However, we still face many difficulties in our industry because of our commitment to accessible and informational Asian news coverage.

      We hope you consider making a contribution to NextShark so we can continue to provide you quality journalism that informs, educates, and inspires the Asian community. Even a $1 contribution goes a long way. Thank you for supporting NextShark and our community.

      © 2023 NextShark, Inc. All rights reserved.