We acknowledge the pain of the Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander members of our department and University community and express our support as a Diversity Committee and department.
The hate, racism, and xenophobia that Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander communities have experienced throughout the COVID-19 global pandemic is unacceptable. The recent resurgence of violent attacks occurring in the San Francisco Bay area, New York, and across the country as well as recent research on the Racialization of Asian Americans during the Global Pandemic* have made it abundantly clear that, as a society, University, college, and department, we have a lot of work to do. Although this late recognition of the suffering of Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander communities is not enough, we hope it is a first step toward action in the future.
As a department, our goal is to be a welcoming and affirming place where all students (and department members)—Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander students, Black students, Indigenous students, students of color, LGBTQI*A+ students, international students, students with disabilities, students with intersecting identities, and other students representing diverse groups—feel supported to attain and exceed their expectations.
Admittedly, until today, the list of students included in this statement on our website’s Diversity and Inclusion page placed “Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander” students in the “other students representing diverse groups” category. We are part of the problem. Continued silence about the suffering of our Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander students fails to provide members of our own community the “adequate support to attain and exceed their expectations.” We will do better.
If you’re a student or faculty or staff member, and you’re struggling during this time, please reach out (confidentially) to any member of the Diversity Committee (listed at the bottom of this note) to share your experiences and let us know how we can help make the department a more welcoming and affirming place for you.
We also recognize that it’s not Asian, Asian-American, or Pacific Islander department members’ role to do the work. If you are experiencing discrimination or bias as a University community member (or you witness discrimination or bias), you may contact the University’s Bias Response and Referral Network as well as access a number of mental health resources available to you.
Other national resources are also available:
- AAPI COVID-19 Project resources
- Stop AAPI hate: Report a hate incident against Asian or Pacific Islander community members
- Hate Crime Book: How to recognize and report Asian hate crimes
- Learning for Justice: Speaking up against racism around the new coronavirus
Statements made by some of our partner organizations:
In solidarity,
The Department of Educational Psychology Diversity Committee
Sherri Turner, Jessie Kember, Jeffrey Bye, Tai Do, Seungwon Chung, Annie Hansen-Burke, Brenna Rudolph, and Sarah Jergenson
*Li, Y. and Nicholson, H.L., Jr. (2021), When “model minorities” become “yellow peril”—Othering and the racialization of Asian Americans in the COVID‐19 pandemic. Sociology Compass, 15: e12849. https://doi.org/10.1111/soc4.12849
