(Content warning for potentially triggering information regarding racism, hate crime, violence and murder, particularly towards East and South East Asians)
Anti-Asian racism is not new, and it is more than a US problem. It has always existed across the world, including the UK. However, the pandemic has created a colossal rise in racism against Asians across the world.
It began with people boycotting or avoiding Chinatowns and Asian-owned takeaways and businesses. Then it quickly escalated to violence. Since the beginning of the pandemic, the UK has seen a 300% spike in reported cases. Anti-Chinese hate speech escalated by 900% on Twitter. 33% of images used to report COVID-19 in British media used images of Asian, notably East and South East Asian (ESEA) people, which presented them as the face of the virus and fuelled racism.
In March 2020, Singaporean student Jonathan Mok was so badly beaten in Oxford Street he required facial surgery. Just a few weeks ago, university lecturer Peng Wang was attacked by four men in Southampton and required hospital treatment.
On 17 March 2021, eight people were killed at massage parlours in Atlanta, America, six of whom were Asian women. A spokesperson from the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department stated, “he apparently has an issue, what he considers a sex addiction, and sees these locations as a temptation for him that he wanted to eliminate” and that the shooter had “a very bad day”.
Anti-Asian racism has been minimised for too long. Now, a new wave is gathering to fight back. Long-standing organisations and new platforms are uniting to strengthen our communities and battle racism.
Please note a majority of the following organisations do their work for free, so do donate if possible:
End the Virus of Racism
https://www.endthevirusofracism.com/
This is a coalition of British citizens and residents who have united against the rise in racism towards people of ESEA heritage during the pandemic. They are the UK’s first ever nonprofit dedicated to this cause. They support victims of hate crimes, work to unite ESEA organisations, and conduct advocacy and research work.
They’re still seeking to raise £150,000 in order to be fully established. Please do donate to their crowdfunder.
besea.n
besea.n (British East and South East Asian Network) is a non-profit grassroots organisation founded by six ESEA women. They aim for “better, positive representation for ESEA people in the UK media and in online spaces”.
The movement originally formed because of how the UK government and media outlets continuously used photos of ESEA people for all COVID-19 related coverage. They created a petition which currently stands at over 25,600 signatures.
In collaboration with End the Virus of Racism and Daniel York Loh, this issue was raised to MP Sarah Owens who held the first-ever parliamentary debate in October 2020 to highlight anti-ESEA racism.
besea.n also co-created a report titled “Ethnic Disparities and Inequality in the UK among ESEA Communities”, a joint response from multiple academics, politicians and organisations. To read the report, click here.
You can donate to support besea.n’s work here: https://ko-fi.com/besean
DAYLDN
Dear Asian Youth (London)
https://www.instagram.com/dearasianyouthlondon/
Dear Asian Youth is led by and for young Asians across the world. They aim to empower the youth and community by education, representation and showcasing talent. DAY also runs fundraising campaigns and encourages the community to be intersectional in their social justice work. The London page is their first UK branch.
Don’t Call Me Oriental
https://www.instagram.com/dontcallmeoriental/
The Don’t Call Me Oriental platform elevates ESEA artists and makers by showcasing their work via their online platform and in exhibitions in both physical and virtual spaces in London and Hong Kong. DCMO’s work often supports charities, including zines to raise money for the Hackney Chinese Community Services to artwork to support besea.n.
The name is in reference to how “oriental” is a harmful term that exoticises, others and generalises Asians.
Racism Unmasked Edinburgh
RUE is an online movement in support of ESEA people living in Edinburgh and the UK. They provide a confidential support messaging service to help those who have experienced racism and created Racism Unmasked Anonymous to document UK based ESEA hate crimes. https://www.instagram.com/racismunmaskedanonymous/
Their previous successful campaigns include pushing Boohoo, Depop, Pretty Little Thing, Nasty Gal, Misspap, Karen Millen and Coast to ban the term “oriental” from their brands.
The London Chinese Community Centre celebrating Chinese New Year in January 2020
London Chinese Community Centre
The CCC has been open for 40 years to support the Chinese community in London, particularly the elderly and vulnerable who make up over half of members. They’ve worked to preserve Chinese art, culture and languages through classes, workshops and by providing spaces.
They are currently at risk of closing and are seeking funding to continue their work. You can donate to their Just Giving page via this link here to help them meet their £70,000 target: https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/cccorguk2020
Kanlungan
Kanlungan
This is a registered charity made up of multiple Filipino and ESEA community organisations. They’ve been serving the Filipino migrant community for over 25 years. Recently, they launched “Pathways to Settlement”, a two-year project funded by Trust for London. This work will help undocumented migrants in London receive access to free legal advice and help them become regularised.
You can donate to them here.
Meridian Wellbeing & Chinese Association of Tower Hamlets
https://www.meridianwellbeing.com/tackling-hate-crime-project
The two organisations have partnered up for their Tackling Hate Crime Project. Their aim is to provide support for elderly and vulnerable Chinese people, including delivering workshops, webinars, advice and advocacy and mental health support.
BEATS
This is a non-profit advocacy organisation for British ESEA people who work in the theatre and screen industry. BEATS aim to advocate for BESEA people, and challenge injustices and prejudices, including calling out organisations and businesses. They also have a directory, co-created with BEAM (British East and South East Asians in Media) of BESEA people who work in screen and stage industries across disciplines Sign up for their newsletter
The South East and East Asian Centre
As part of the Confronting COVID-Related Hate project and in partnership with Protection Approaches, Chinese Welfare Trust and Newham Chinese Association, SEEAC created a Hate Crime hub - collating an Information Guide on Hate crime and Hate incident, Hate Crime Statistics in the UK, a directory where you can report a Hate crime, and Mental Health resources for victims of Hate crime.
Southeast and East Asian Centre
For news outlets, Resonate and Next Shark are leading publications on Asian news across culture, entertainment and politics.
‘Minor Feelings’ by Cathy Park Hong is a stunning book on the Asian American experience. She dismantles the model minority myth, tells the history of Asians in America, and blends personal memoir and her lived experiences to create this highly praised book.
Campaign Against Secondary Victimisation (CASVIC) have launched a national hate crime survey for the ESEA diaspora in the UK in order to provide the public, and public bodies, with hate crime data. The deadline is 30 April.
You can donate to the Stop Asian American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) Hate Fund. The money will go towards supporting organisations working to “empower and uplift the AAPI community, with initiatives such as increased community safety and support for those affected by violence”. They have also verified fundraisers from the families of those affected by the recent Atlanta shootings.
This list is by no means comprehensive. Please consider this a first step on the journey against anti-Asian racism.
Christy Ku is an East Asian woman of colour and multidisciplinary creative. She is a poet, performer, photographer, and podcaster. Her other passions include writing short stories, YouTube journalism, and digital content production. Her work focuses on self-realisation, self-actualisation, and healing through art. Christy is a Barbican Young Poet alumna, a graduate from The Writing Room programme 2019, and one of the top 6 finalists for BBC 1Xtra’s Words First programme 2019. A keen advocate for healing and empowerment through the arts, Christy is always keen to connect with people who appreciate the human power of creative practice.
She can be found @kukadoodles on Instagram and Twitter, and via her website.
