We are More than Our Ethnicity
We are More than Our Ethnicity
March 16, 2022 marked the one year anniversary of the murder of eight people, six of whom were Asian American women. I designed this poster thinking of how each of them died as foreigners. Their citizenship presiding over public discourse. These women, even in death, were not seen as Americans, were not claimed by their countries of origin, and were left to die alone and afraid in a country that never understood them.
These women could not be properly grieved without proof of citizenship. The Wall Street Journal described them as “born in Asia,” “held a green card,” and “two from China.” The New York Times rigorously cited the Foreign Ministry in Seoul as they confirmed four victims as “ethnic Koreans.” Several others reported them as women of “Asian descent” and misspelled their names. ‘What’ they were was more accurately researched than who they were.
Creating inclusive policy will require a willingness to accept a diverse America, where Asian faces are considered American faces. The COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act signed by President Biden merely improves access to reporting hate crimes, but does little to reduce anti-Asian discrimination. It does not expand the definition or address intersectionality. Hate crimes are acts of violence as a response to subjective cultural identities and will look different when viewed in the context of race and gender.
As I reflect on the past year, I am hurt and betrayed. Hurt because I have spent decades in this country and celebrated American traditions. I feel betrayed by my unique Korean American identity, knowing I could be murdered, and before knowing the many wonderful things about me, people would first know that I was an “ethnic Korean.”