#StopAsianHate

May is Asian & Pacific American Heritage month. It feels particularly timely this year given the surge of hate incidents targeting members of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities in recent months. I’ve been unsure how to write about it, but I’ve done my best to collect my thoughts here.

There are so many ways in which I am incredibly fortunate and privileged. My parents came to the U.S. seeking more education and new opportunities, and they fully achieved those goals with highly successful careers. So, by sheer luck of the birth lottery, I grew up loved, supported, comfortable, and I received a world-class education and so much more. I am so grateful to my parents, as well as earlier generations of Asian immigrants who forged the path in the face of tremendous challenges.

I’m gratified by the recent successes of Asians in the arts and media: film, television, music, journalism, theater, etc., which broadens representation and people’s perceptions of diversity in this country. I want to pay tribute to some early media and arts pioneers from my youth: George Takei, Seiji Ozawa, Connie Chung, and so many others. Obviously, the Asian American identity is not monolithic, encompassing an enormous diversity of cultures and traditions. My ancestry is Korean, and we have a strong identity and a proud heritage. In childhood, I’d often try to emphasize those distinctions (although “I’m not Chinese, I’m Korean, you ignorant a**hole!” was maybe not the best response to racial insults). So, it wasn’t automatic to feel kinship with other Asian communities, but I think more and more members of the AAPI community are feeling it now.

For certain, we’ve all encountered racism. We are very different peoples and individuals, and it is daunting to feel that you are seen as “the same”. It is also exhausting. In my case, I haven’t been the recipient of much directed hatred, but mostly subtle “otherness”. My name received a lot of attention growing up; not all of it negative, but most of it unwanted for a kid growing up in the Midwest who was just trying to fit in. I even tried using my English middle name (Edmund) for a summer after 1st grade (fortunately, it didn’t take). I think even then I knew it wasn’t going to change my how people would initially see me.

There are optimistic signs that historical divisions sewn to isolate minority groups is breaking down, and our shared struggles are uniting groups of color to support each other. Greater acknowledgement and recognition of widespread, structural racism has brought so many together in common advocacy to #StopAsianHate. Any form of targeted racial or ethnic violence or discrimination, whether Anti-Black, Anti-Asian, Anti-Semitic, Anti-Muslim, Anti-Latinx, or any other kind, hurts us all, and we must stand together. #RacismIsAVirus

Unfortunately, education remains an area where minority status continues to divide groups, particularly with regards to “elite” schools and universities. Admissions to highly selective Universities (anti-affirmative action lawsuits against Harvard and other institutions) are one example where people of color have been pitted against one another. The controversies over admissions to New York Ciry’s magnet schools are another. Although Asians are (in some places) well-represented in higher education, particularly in STEM fields, AAPI student enrollment nationwide is equal to our representation in the US population (7%). But I submit that Asian representation in faculty and administration, has been achieved largely by assimilating into the norms, practices, and traditions of fundamentally elitist and exclusionary institutions. In some instances, Asians have become the very obstacles we once faced.

A pernicious undercurrent exists in academia, where some start to believe we have greater knowledge and insight than others on all things. It can lead to a particularly galling form of hypocrisy… far too many see themselves as "intellectual", “progressive”, “culturally-responsive”, and "accepting", and yet propagate the practices of exclusion every single day. The hallowed halls of higher education remain some of the most unwelcoming and judgmental spaces, particularly for Black and Brown people.

Academic institutions can be very slow to change, and those who have long been part of the existing system can be unwilling to change. Everyone in higher education, regardless of race or ethnicity, should be pushing for greater diversity and inclusivity. We must acknowledge that some groups face a far less welcoming environment in our classrooms. I believe AAPI faculty members, in particular, must stop siding with higher ed traditionalists regarding “academic standards” and “rigor”, which are simply dog whistles for exclusion.

For make no mistake, Anti-Asian biases persist in higher education. As a tenured Full Professor and Director of a University Research Institute, I still regularly have meetings or engage in correspondence where people mispronounce or misspell my first name (it's just one word, no space!). Despite the fact that it's two very common English syllables, people manage to mangle it all the time (or infuriatingly will just give up on my first name and call me “Kim”). It still irritates me, just like it did when I was 6 years old. After nearly 5 decades of rationalizing or brushing these off as innocent mistakes, I have finally learned to call it what it is: Racism.

Sorry, I'm a week late with this newsletter! Our academic year is still wrapping up (quarter system... ugh), but I'll be back in 2 weeks with some big news for the summer!

(Socially) Distant Creations

• #Ham4Progress in conversation with Jon M. Chu [Hamilton] A conversation with the director of Crazy Rich Asians to talk about AAPI representation in the industry, with Hamilton cast members Marcus Choi and Taeko McCaroll. Chu's next feature is In the Heights, the movie adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's first Tony Award-winning musical.

• Yo Yo Ma Answers Cello Questions from Twitter [WIRED] Just a fun session with the famous cellist, showing that in addition to being an incredible musician, he has a warm personality and sense of humor.

• Star Wars Theme, A Cappella [MayTree] The Korean A Cappella quintet sings the iconic theme from our favorite space opera.

• They Still Want to Kill Us [Sozo Creative] This week was the world premiere of this short film of an aria by composer and activist Daniel Bernard Roumain, performed by mezzo-soprano J’Nai Bridges, and directed by filmmaker Yoram Savion, to mark the 100th anniversary of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. Stream for free on the Opera Philadelphia Channel (through July 31).

• How Do You Sleep? [U. Maryland Faux Paz] Congratulations to the winners of the 2021 International Championship of College A Cappella! Also check out runners up Upper Structure (Berklee College of Music) and Fundamentally Sound (University of Wisconsin-Madison).

• Building It Better Together Town Hall: Take Action Against Hate for Asian Americans [6abc] This was in March, but still timely and relevant... Action News Anchor Nydia Han, who's been a leading voice locally and nationally against hate targeting Asian Americans, moderated a panel of local community leaders and influencers (Rep. Andy Kim, Philadelphia Councilmember Helen Gym, and many others) to discuss the rise in hate crimes against the AAPI community.