Welcome to another edition of LTAR-Let’s Talk about Race-this is part two of our gun violence show – I’m Althea Billings

Let’s Talk About Race (LTAR)

Welcome to another edition of LTAR-Let’s Talk about Race-this is part two of our gun violence show – I’m Althea Billings
We are focusing on racial violence in America -Racial violence comes in many forms- banning books, restricting medical care, and demonizing certain populations.
But it is the bullets behind gun violence that physically stop lives and we deconstruct the aftermath of the Atlanta Spa shootings, where eight people, including six Asian women, were murdered.
At LTAR- We continue our discussion on Gun violence in America-The aftermath or thoughts and pray again and again…
Outro
-Don’t let what happened in the Atlanta Spa shootings motivated by race and gender be forgotten- To name anti-Asian racism in the U.S. means confronting centuries of discrimination, violence, and oppression
Please remember, racial violence in America also created organizations and protests, from African American anti-lynching campaigns to civil rights activism in Latinx, Native American, and Asian American communities, the history of racial violence is necessarily a dual history of repression and resistance.
We end the show with music and song from
“Stop the Hatred,” written in response to ongoing anti-Asian attacks, is a collaboration between Jin and Fugees alum Wyclef Jean that aims to send a message of unity between the AAPI and Black communities. The song was released at the start of the month, with a music video directed by filmmaker Bao Nguyen (Be Water) and produced in partnership with The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) debuting on May 13. Filmed in New York City’s Chinatown, where businesses have been heavily impacted since the pandemic began and multiple restaurants and stores have permanently closed, the music video features shots of multigenerational families from the AAPI community. Some stand side by side with their elders, while others hold up photos of their grandparents—in a nod to how many victims of recent attacks have been elderly people. Jin raps of his grandma’s passing last year: “Part of me sees grace in the fact that she’s not here/ As a grandson this statement’s a fact/ No elderly should ever be victim of such a heinous attack.” In another verse, Wyclef raps about George Floyd as scenes of protesters marching against police brutality play in the foreground. “Racism and hate against underrepresented communities can only be fought with unity,” Wyclef says in a press release.
These images of people of different races unifying on the streets to call for racial justice, much like that late March rally, capture the spirit of “Stop the Hatred.” The music video drops at a time when clips of attacks on Asian Americans, including instances in which the perpetrators are Black, continue to circulate online. AAPI community leaders have warned against statements that generalize about entire groups of people while calling attention to how communities of color have been historically pitted against each other in the U.S.—in part by the model minority myth.
Previously on: One Person , No Vote