By Janie Ye –Wayzata High School
As the final piece of the series Understanding and Stopping Anti-Asian Hate, this article will contain some of my thoughts and opinions about the whole project. I also want to express my hopes for the future of Asian Americans.
I decided to research and write about this topic because it is something I am passionate about. As an Asian American, my experiences in America have been different from others, and I have encountered both positive and negative situations in my community. I want my audience to reflect on their own lives and how they are impacted by racism and violence, because that is what many Asian Americans face. I tried my best to be impartial, but some of the articles are more opinionated than others. I picked the title of the series to be what it is because I wanted it to be clear what I was writing about, so whenever I added an article I was sure it related to my overarching theme. Overall, I would like for it to be a tool for spreading awareness on the challenges that Asian Americans face due to racism.
While writing this series, I learned a lot of new things about the past and present experiences of different Asian groups in the United States. I learned more about the ideals of America and how they can change with time. Even though racism is a large problem, history has proven that that can be changed for the better with people who are willing to initiate reforms and work towards diversity.
I hope that this series can represent a step towards bridging the gap between Asian Americans and other communities in America. I want it to be a catalyst for change and improvement; I want people who read this to change their mindsets and perhaps take action in their communities. I would also like to continue to work towards equality and stopping racism.
I think that the future for Asian Americans looks bright (at least brighter than previous years). Different organizations are working to improve the lives and conditions of different Asian American groups, and individuals are starting to realize the problem and find solutions. Anti-Asian racism and hate is no longer ignored; rather, it is called out and condemned. There have definitely been improvements, but we just have to work harder to continue spreading awareness. Further steps could be taken in educational institutions to improve knowledge on the effects of racism on different groups and Asian American history in the United States. There could also be more efforts to educate employees in the workplace to prevent discrimination and promote diversity. Of course, all of these ideas would need approval and funding. What we can do right now is respect others and acknowledge that everyone has different perspectives. Civic action cannot be taken before the problem is understood and well-known. Perhaps in the future we could improve the lives of Asian Americans through legislation and government action, but for now we should focus on changing our own mindsets to be more open towards different beliefs and cultures.
