Resolution condemning Asian hate crimes passes Michigan legislature following Atlanta shootings
Hate crimes against Asian Americans are on the surge across the country. The late Vichar Ratanapakdee, (seen in the photo on the left) was an 84-year-old immigrant from Thailand, who was violently shoved to the ground in a deadly attack in San Francisco. , during a community rally to raise awareness of anti-Asian violence and racist attitudes, in response to the string of violent racist attacks against Asians during the pandemic, held at Los Angeles Historic Park near the Chinatown district in Los Angeles, Saturday, Feb. 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) AP
Written by: Lindsay Moore (Booth Newspapers)
Resolutions condemning the growing number of hate crimes against against Asian American and Pacific Islanders were adopted by the Michigan state House and Senate on Thursday, March 18.
Sen. Stephanie Chang, D-Detroit, and Rep. Ranjeev Puri, D-Canton, proposed resolutions in response to the killing of eight people, primarily Asian women, at massage parlor in Atlanta.
The fatal shooting is the most recent example of a spike in hate crimes targeting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, according to a report by Stop AAPI Hate.
The national report recorded 3,795 hate-driven incidents reported between March 19, 2020 and February 28, 2021 from all 50 states. Of those reports, 25 occurred in Michigan.
On the Senate floor, Chang delivered remarks in support of the resolution giving examples of her own friends and fellow Michiganders.
She spoke of an Asian American dance teacher who was Zoom bombed and mocked with fake Asian accents. Another account was in a Michigan store where an Asian American employee was told he didn’t belong and “go back to China and take the virus with you,” Chang said.
Nationally, the Stop AAPI Hate report showed that women report hate crimes 2.3 times more than men.
The motive behind the Atlanta shooting is still being investigated but police have identified that six of the eight victims were Asian American women.
“Asian American women across the country were horrified and woke up the next morning feeling scared, sad and worried,” Chang said.
Rep. Puri told the house floor he spoke with an Asian American mom in his district who has chosen not to send her children back to in-person learning out of fear of bullying.
He spoke of his own experience growing up post-911 and being judged solely on his skin and his facial hair.
“I can speak firsthand to hateful rhetoric and the effect that this has on vulnerable communities,” he said. “The general lack of awareness of anti-Asian hate crimes and violence exasperates their impact.”
Following the proclamation issued by President Joe Biden, all U.S. and Michigan flags were lowered to half-staff immediately on Thursday, March 18 and will remain lowered through Monday, March 22 to honor the Atlanta victims, according to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s office.
“The senseless murders of eight people in Atlanta, including six Asian-American women, is a national tragedy,” Whitmer said in a release. “By lowering the flags, we honor the legacies of the eight lives that were taken from us too soon and declare that hate has no home in Michigan or anywhere in the United States. My thoughts are with the victims’ loved ones and the entire Atlanta community as they mourn this loss.”
People can self-report instances of hate or basis at https://stopaapihate.org/. For more information on the program in Michigan, contact Melissa Borja at mborja@umich.edu.
Michigan residents can report hate crimes by email at hatecrimes@michigan.gov or by phone at 313-456-0200. Residents can file complaints of unlawful discrimination based on race, sexual orientation, gender, or religion by contacting the Michigan Department of Civil Rights by phone, 800-482-3604, or email MDCR-INFO@michigan.gov.