Long Blog Three- The Rise of COVID-19 and Anti-Asian Violence
The rise of anti-Asian hate crimes and violence has been greatly amplified by the pandemic, in Toronto and across the globe. Reinforced by negative stereotypes perpetuated by politicians and the media, blame for the COVID-19 pandemic has fallen onto Asians of all backgrounds, not just Chinese people. One of the assumptions about Asian Americans and Asian Canadians is that they are considered the “model minority”, who are well-educated and hard workers and an example of how these traits will allow you to get far in this country. However, this idea was created by white people to fracture relationships between Asians and Black people and it has succeeded to wedge apart POC communities. The separation of minority groups leads to lack of understanding and support, leaving them vulnerable to discrimination and hate crimes.
The mass shooting in Atlanta that left eight people dead, six of the victims being Asian, the brutal attacks of Asian elders in the streets caught on video, the heart-breaking cries of the elderly woman who fought back against her attacker- these events are becoming increasingly common to surface the news. The Chinese Canadian National Council’s Toronto chapter produced a report detailing the information from “recent surveys regarding 1,150 incidents of anti-Asian racism during the pandemic, with almost half of those incidents taking place in the first two months of 2021.” (Connolly 2021) In Markham, Ontario, a city outside of Toronto, a 33-year-old man is being charged for six different incidents of violence on Asians that are believed to be hate-motivated. (Doucette 2021) Const. Laura Nicolle reported that “The victim had been outside walking when a suspect ran up behind her and hit her in the back with an object,” (Doucette 2021) Just today, Toronto police have launched a hate crime investigation after a man allegedly made an anti-Asian comment at a victim before punching him at a restaurant in Scarborough. (CBC News 2021)
While these attacks are shocking for many to hear, the vast majority of hate crimes go unreported due to many differing factors. Vancouver police have reported “a significant jump in anti-Asian hate crimes in the past year — from 12 cases in 2019 to 98 cases in 2020.” equivalent to a 717% increase in the number of cases. (Connolly 2021) It is truly difficult to grasp that the true number may be much higher and the victims are suffering in silence. This anti-Asian racism has been propelled by the pandemic and the rise of white supremacy. White people have begun to target Asians with associated racialized characteristics such as that they are “dirty” or responsible for COVID-19.
Despite the great increase in these crimes, perpetrated by the pandemic, their presence is nothing new to Toronto. The Canadian government has a long history of discrimination against Chinese citizens and immigrants, culminating in the Chinese Immigration Act, also known as the “Exclusion Act” introduced in 1923. (Bangarth 2003) This act prohibited the entry of all Chinese into Canada, except for diplomats, Canadian-born returnees, students, and merchants who were deemed worthy additions to Canadian society, and halted all immigration from China. (Bangarth 2003) By explicitly prohibiting Chinese immigration, the Canadian government perpetrated discrimination and negative stereotypes of Chinese people, that would be carried far into the future. Although this has been amended throughout the years, this policy had a great effect on Asian immigrants and the way they are viewed by others in society.
Looking toward the future, Canadians are pushing for large improvements and changes to the current anti-racism strategies presented by the federal government. The executive director of the Chinese and Southeast Asian Legal Clinic in Toronto, Avvy Go claims that the 2019 strategy failed to specifically mention anti-Asian racism in its foundational policy document, while including anti-Black and anti-Indigenous racism, anti-Semitism and Islamophobia as key targets. ( Jones 2021) With the immense increase in anti-Asian discrimination and violence, citizens are desperately calling for new policies that will spur action to prevent these crimes. Reflecting on her experiences, Go recounts that “Almost every single Chinese Canadian I know has experienced something, some incident during the past year, whether it’s people yelling at them, telling them to go back to China or being denied service.” (Jones 2021)
The rise of the pandemic and it’s reaching effects into our society requires education, understanding and action for the safety and prosperity of our Asian communities. Please reach out to your AAPI friends and family during these difficult times! Here is a list of resources, compiled by the AAPIP, to help educate and support the AAPI community.
Works Cited
Connolly, Amanda. “Canadians Must Stand up against ‘Unacceptable’ Rise in Anti-Asian Racism: Minister.” Global News, Global News, 3 Apr. 2021, globalnews.ca/news/7734109/anti-asian-racism-canada-what-to-do/.
Doucette, Chris. “Man Accused of ‘Hate-Motivated’ Violence against Asians in Markham.” Torontosun, Toronto Sun, 25 Mar. 2021, torontosun.com/news/local-news/man-accused-of-hate-motivated-violence-against-asians-in-markham.
Bangarth, Stephanie D. “‘We are Not Asking You to Open Wide the Gates for Chinese Immigration’: The Committee for the Repeal of the Chinese Immigration Act and Early Human Rights Activism in Canada.” The Canadian Historical Review, vol. 84, no. 3, 2003, pp. 395–422. ProQuest, http://myaccess.library.utoronto.ca/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.proquest.com%2Fscholarly-journals%2Fwe-are-not-asking-you-open-wide-gates-chinese%2Fdocview%2F224268774%2Fse-2%3Faccountid%3D14771.
Jones, Ryan Patrick. “Asian Canadians See Flaws in Federal Anti-Racism Strategy | CBC News.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 8 Apr. 2021, www.cbc.ca/news/politics/anti-racism-strategy-asian-canadians-1.5977980.
“Toronto Police Launch Hate Crime Probe after Man Makes Anti-Asian Comments, Punches Victim | CBC News.” CBCnews, CBC/Radio Canada, 8 Apr. 2021, www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/anti-asian-hate-assault-scarborough-toronto-1.5979700.
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