Pamela Cruz. Peninsula 360 Press [P360P].
After a 91-year-old Asian-American man was pushed to the ground for no reason by a hooded man in Oakland's Chinatown, alarm bells have gone off throughout the community, and the events have echoed all the way to the White House.
This Monday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki addressed, during a press conference, the rising tide of attacks against people from the Asian American community, which have not stopped since the start of the pandemic by COVID-19, and were exacerbated when the former president, Donald Trump, called the disease the "Chinese virus".
Given the facts that, in some cases, have been recorded and have spread through social networks, it is possible that the White House and President Joseph Biden have taken action on the matter, as the president himself has branded these acts as unacceptable.
While Psaki said he did not know if President Biden had been able to view the videos of the assaults, he noted that "he is concerned about discrimination and actions against the Asian-American community. That's why he signed the executive order and why he's been outspoken in making clear that attacks, verbal or otherwise, are unacceptable.
And that is because President Biden issued an executive order during his first week in office that recognizes that racism is directed against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs).
In addition, it also ordered the Department of Health and Human Services to avoid using language that could be offensive to the AAPI community.
Amid growing fear from the AAPI community in several California cities, including San Francisco, just this Monday, the Oakland Police Department was able to identify the attacker and also discovered that on the same day, the same man assaulted two more bystanders, a 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman, all with the same mode of operation.
The city of San Francisco also has its own nightmare, as police recently arrested a 19-year-old suspect following an attack in January, which was captured on video, where an 84-year-old man was killed.
Students in the AAPI community have received constant attacks from their peers, and the situation has not changed despite holding virtual classes.
So said Akil Vohra, executive director of Asian American Youth Empowerment and Leadership Development (AALEAD), who pointed out during an Ethnic Media Services briefing that Asian American and Pacific Islander communities today have seen a significant increase in bullying and harassment, "I think it's part of the rhetoric we've heard from the previous administration - from Donald Trump - about the source of this pandemic."
This, she said, includes verbal attacks, denial of service and physical assaults, "this really puts the well-being of our children at greater risk," she said.
In outlining his views on the potential return to the classroom for millions of students across the country, he stressed that they must address "not just COVID-19 safety protocols in place, but really making sure that schools and districts are taking steps to ensure cultural competency. And the equity agenda is a key part of that decision-making calculus," otherwise "marginalized API communities will not be part of the 'back-to-school' process and will become invisible.
