Dear NYU Steinhardt Community,
Yesterday eight people were shot by a gunman in the Atlanta area. Six of the eight victims were Asian women.
These horrific acts of violence remind us, once again, that we have significant work to do in our journey toward becoming a more equitable society. It bears repeating that since the coronavirus entered the United States, violence against people of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) descent has increased. The US has a long history of scapegoating its Asian citizens. The organization
Stop AAPI Hate reported that Asian-Americans were targeted in 3,800 hate incidents in the past year.
The tragic shootings in Atlanta demonstrate how language has the power to move people to action. Senator Raphael Warnock of Georgia laid bare the issue with these words: “Once again we see that hate is deadly.” Xenophobic representations by the media and spurious claims by elected officials linking people of Asian descent to the pandemic add fuel to the raging fire of bigotry.
At NYU Steinhardt, we are dedicated to promoting racial equity and racial healing as a critical part of our mission to advance the education, health, and well-being of people and communities around the world. We send a message of unity and peace, today, and express our continued concern for the safety and well-being of the Asian-American community. We demand an end to the violence against AAPIs and stand in solidarity with the Asian-American community and its supporters.
If you have experienced or witnessed anti-Asian violence or harassment, please report it to the
Stop AAPI Hate Reporting Center and to the
New York Attorney General's Office through their hotline at 1-800-771-7755 or email
civil.rights@ag.ny.gov. You can also take a training called
How to Respond to Anti-Asian/American Harassment and find additional resources through
NYU’s Office of Global Inclusion and the
NYU Asian/Pacific/American Institute.
Jack H. Knott, Dean, Gale and Ira Drukier Chair
David E. Kirkland, Vice Dean for Equity, Belonging, and Community Action