Dear ACPA,
As you all know, eight people (Xiaojie Tan, Delaina Yaun, Paul Andre Michels, Daoyou Feng, Yong Ae Yue, Hyun Jung Grant, Soon Chung Park, and Suncha Kim) were killed in an attack on three Atlanta spas on March 17th. Six of the victims were women of Asian descent. Unfortunately, these incidents occurred during a time where there was increasing violence and harassment towards AAPI individuals. Stop AAPI Hate reported 3,795 incidents of harassment and discrimination against AAPI individuals between March 19, 2020 and February 28, 2021. Here in the Bay Area, several AAPI individuals, including seniors, were targeted and assaulted in recent weeks.
The Alameda County Psychological Association condemns the discrimination and violence directed towards AAPI individuals. We grieve these losses and are outraged by violence directed towards anyone. We recognize that AAPI individuals have experienced bias and violence throughout our nation’s history, and understand that many AAPI individuals are traumatized by these events.
ACPA stands in solidarity with AAPI individuals, and with all those who experience discrimination and hatred. We encourage all of our members to take steps to fight racism. ACPA is committed to taking steps to advance anti-racism. We encourage you to consider supporting peers who are experiencing discrimination and who feel targeted. With clients, we suggest that you bring up these issues and inquire with them about how they are doing. We request that you offer to assist those who may have been impacted. Furthermore, we ask that you interrupt any speech or behavior that is hateful and/or discriminatory. Other resources and opportunities to take action are listed below.
There is much more work to do in the march towards social justice and equity. The Executive Board of ACPA will reflect upon these issues and choose actions that we can take with the intention to further support social justice and anti-racism. As before, we vow to use our positions as educators, clinicians, and students to support and advocate for individuals from all underserved and underrepresented communities. We also welcome suggestions from the membership about how we can respond to these issues and better-serve our membership and our community. If you would like to make a suggestion, please email ACPA Past President Eric Samuels at eric@ignitechangetherapy.com.
In solidarity,
The 2021 Executive Board of the Alameda County Psychological Association
Resources and Action Items:
1. Report Hate Crimes against Asian Americans
● https://stopaapihate.org/ (12 languages)
● https://www.standagainsthatred.org/report (5 languages)
● Local and other reporting sites: https://movementhub.org/get-help/
2. Assistance with legal and social services through the Stop Hate hotline:
(Asian Americans Advancing Justice partnered with Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and their Stop Hate project)
1-844-9-NO-HATE
3. Know your rights
(1) Legal right to be treated fairly and without discrimination: Federal and State laws and government sites to file a complaint (organized by states)
https://secureservercdn.net/104.238.69.231/a1w.90d.myftpupload.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Stop_AAPI_Hate_Public_Accommodation_Law_Survey_200920.pdf(2) Your rights if you are stopped by police, immigration agents, or the FBI (Resource provided by American Civil Liberties Union).
https://www.aclu.org/issues/immigrants-rights/know-your-rights-discrimination-against-immigrants-and-muslims?redirect=feature/know-your-rights-immigration#immigration
4. Bystander Intervention training (against harassment)
https://advancingjustice-aajc.org/events
5. Self-defense and Personal safety training
https://www.impactbayarea.org/online_classes
6. Civic Engagement: Collective justice and shared liberation
https://movementhub.org/make-change/
7. Culture Surge: an artists and culture makers’ coalition for justice, care and connection.
https://www.culturesurge.com/about-us
8. Other action ideas: Host a panel discussion, lead a community safety audit, create a survey for research, create Mud Stencils, hold a Chalk Walk, create a Guerrilla-Style Video about Street Harassment, organize a Protest or March, initiate legislative advocacy, host workshops, host a film screening, host Fundraising
https://www.ihollaback.org/holla-how-tos/
9. Donate
● STOP AAPI Hate: https://stopaapihate.org/actnow/
● Asian Americans Advancing Justice: https://advancingjustice-aajc.org
● AAPI Civic Engagement Fund: https://movementhub.org/donate/
● Hollaback https://www.ihollaback.org/
● American Civil Liberties Union https://www.aclu.org/
10. Share resources with others
https://advancingjustice-aajc.org/covid19