CW: Hate crimes, violence

Once again, and always. I am tired and angry and scared. Angry, because the stream of violence against Asians continues. Tired, because so little progress is being made, so the work never seems to stop. Scared, because it's hitting closer to home 1/14

On Sunday, two women in Manhattan were attacked by someone with a hammer. Two days ago, two elderly Asian women waiting for the bus in San Francisco were stabbed.

Since March 2020, there's been nearly 4000 reports of hate crimes against Asians. How many more do you think 2/14

have gone unreported?

I am pretty plugged into news and stories about Asians, and I only just heard about these last night. Which makes me wonder how deeply buried are similar stories by algorithms and copy editors. 3/14

I don't mean to impose or wallow in despair. I want to keep myself and hopefully, at LEAST 1 other person from becoming complacent. Just because it's Heritage Month, just because there's Marvel movie with Asian leads, just because there is a hashtag, doesn't mean we are done 4/14

And when I say 'we,' I mean everyone, not just Asians. So once again, I ask you to do SOMETHING. Something actionable, something more than just retweeting #StopAAPIHate or #AsianHeritageMonth . I mean do that too; but right after, try one of the following... 5/14

Donate. This link will list a bunch of local orgs. Find one closest to you, and support them. All of THIS SHIT feels big and insurmountable, but acting locally will yield more observable change and feel like a bigger impact. 6/14 https://www.gofundme.com/c/act/stop-aapi-hate

Volunteer. If you can't donate, but you really want to provide the biggest impact, reach out to one of those orgs or try to google what orgs are closer to you that could people power to move change. I can't stress enough how understaffed your local Asian Resource Center is. 7/14

Support Asian owned businesses. Everyone is struggling, but Asian owned shops are struggling more than others because of fear and shit. Buy their products. Nothing local? Google that shit. Oh, look Good House Keeping started a list 8/14 https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/life/a35768747/asian-owned-businesses/

Let Asian folks tell their stories on your platforms. Fuck it, I am extending this to BIMPOC in general. Representation is so important because it normalizes the presence of marginalized communities in your spaces. This combats othering and gatekeeping. 9/14

I add this bit right after the last one, solely because I am in the #ttrpg sphere more than anywhere else. For those of you streaming and podcasting APs or whatever:

TAKE A LOOK AT YOUR CAST LIST. WHO IS REPRESENTED AT YOUR TABLE? WHO ISN'T? NOW ASK YOURSELF WHY? 10/14

Yes, be safe with who you ask to play with you, but do the work to find safe folks who represent BIMPOC/Queer folx. There is a reason why it takes a while, we have been inundated with messaging that we don't belong. Show us that isn't true. 11/14

And finally, check in with your Asian folks. Let them know you are a safe space that won't judge or try to fix everything. Like you, and everyone else, we just want to vibe and exist. 12/14

I will also say, Asian folks, all of this applies to us too. The onus is just as much on us as it is our advocates to incite change. Support and hype one another up, we can't do this alone and siloed off from each other. Fcuk it, say hi to me here. I love meeting new peeps! 13/14

Please love each other. Stand in solidarity with each other. Asian folx, Black folx, Queer folx, Indigenous folx, Trans folx and so many other peeps and instersectionaliies. Stay educated, stay mad. Don't postpone happiness and unmute your mic. 14/14

I have more resources in this thread from several weeks ago too. In case you're looking for more stuff!
https://twitter.com/TheKappaChris/status/1372085517949362180

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