AAAFund Condemns Murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Other Victims of Police Abuse
AAAFund Condemns Murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Other Victims of Police Abuse
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: media@aaa-fund.org
We at the Asian American Action Fund stand in solidarity with our Black brothers and sisters, and express our profound sorrow for the murders of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and so many other victims of police abuse. We recognize the deeply-rooted trauma that police violence causes the Black community, and call for meaningful change at the local, state and national level that ends this systemic oppression once and for all.
Now, more than ever, is the time for action. The protests rippling across the country demonstrate the need for reform more clearly than any statement ever could. We salute those trying to protest peacefully in the streets, exercising their freedom of expression. Nothing is more American than standing up against injustice, especially in one’s own government. Sadly, the violent crackdown on these protests serves only to underscore the brutality and corruption festering in our police departments, all the way up to the president.
We are ashamed and saddened that Asian American police officers enabled Derek Chauvin’s murder of George Floyd. We all bear civic responsibility in a democracy, and it is on those of us in the AAPI community to actively support the rights of all marginalized communities and the efforts of people dismantling systemic oppression. Just as we challenge America to reconsider the mythologies around what it means to be an American, we must also challenge ourselves to redefine what America stands for.
Americans deserve better. We deserve a transformed law enforcement system that puts the needs of the people first. We deserve a president with empathy and leadership. Most of all, we deserve an America dedicated to acknowledging and addressing the injustice endemic to our system. But this America won’t exist until we all stand up against the inhumane, morally reprehensible, and oppressive treatment of our Black brothers and sisters at the hands of police officers.
We ask all of you to join us in showing solidarity and calling for change. Donate to bail funds, hold honest conversations about race with your families and friends, and take action. Below, we have started a list of resources for how we can make our voices heard. We will continue to compile and publicize these resources as a community.
Ways to Help:
AAPI Allyship Actions for the Black Community
Ways to Support Black Lives Matter
How to Take Action Beyond the Streets
Letters for Black Lives (with Asian language translations)
Ways to Learn:
Officer who stood by as George Floyd died highlights complex Asian American, black relations – Kimmy Yam
‘Model Minority’ Myth Again Used as a Racial Wedge Between Asians and Blacks – Kat Chow
The Combahee River Collective Statement
The Case for Reparations – Ta-Nehisi Coates
Anti-Racism Education Resources
Founded in 1999, the Asian American Action Fund (www.aaafund.org) is a Democratic Asian American Pacific Islander political action committee that has successfully supported over 200 candidates for office. The organization’s goal is to increase the voice of Asian American Pacific Islander voices in local, state, and federal office and address AAPI under-representation by mobilizing campaign volunteers, resources, and technical assistance.
Unless clearly identified as statements of the AAA-Fund, the views, opinions, analyses, and assumptions expressed in each blog or clearinghouse post are those of the author or contributor alone, and not those of the AAA-Fund.
