The Article below was published in Vol. 136, Issue 7 of the Lake Forest College Stentor on April 2, 2021.
Emma Overton ‘21 and Adam Hartzer ‘23
Editor-in-Chief and News Editor | Managing Editor and Layout Editor
overtoneg@lfc.edu | hartzeraj@lfc.edu
On March 16, a series of mass shootings occurred at spas and massage parlors in Atlanta, Georgia, killing eight people, six of whom were Asian American women, and setting off discussions about a rise in Anti-Asian hate in the United States. The shootings in Atlanta were also compounded by other attacks on Asians, including the attack of a 75-year old San Francisco woman on March 17, and by the anti-Asian sentiment that has prevailed since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. As NPR explains, since the start of the pandemic, the organization Stop AAPI Hate, which “tracks reports of violence against Asian American and Pacific Islander communities [has] received reports of over 2,800 hate incidents across the United States.” To better understand the impact of anti-Asian hate on members of the Lake Forest College student body, Stentor staff spoke with two members of the AAPI community and campus leaders, President of the Japanese Cultural Club (JCC) Reina Yanagiba ‘21 and President of United Asia, Hao Wang ‘21 for their responses to the recent events.
Yanagiba, who identifies Japanese American, shared that she was “sad about what happened, but [she] wasn’t surprised.” She explained that there have been “several cases” of hate crimes towards Asians before the Atlanta shooting, but neither “the media or [any]one really talked about it.” For Yanagiba, “hearing about the Atlanta shooting made me feel scared because the Atlanta shooting was in the suburbs . . .” She explained her fears, noting that “we live in Lake Forest, which is a predominately white [area], so I [thought], what if there is a possibility of us getting into similar situations? That has definitely crossed my mind before.”
Similarly, Wang, who identifies as Chinese and Asian shared, “it was definitely sad to hear the news . . . it made me upset. At first I was shocked but when I calmed down and thought about it, I wasn’t that surprised. There have been several hate crimes this year . . . [and] they have been happening very often, even before this year. We have also been experiencing a lot of microaggressions in our daily lives. It builds up to a point [and] if we only put the spotlight on one event it won’t be sufficient. I am afraid that it will happen again . . . if we don’t do anything . . I think it will just keep happening and happening more often.”
On March 18, two days after the Atlanta shootings, President Schutt emailed the campus community. In his email, Schutt, in part, stated, “[a]t a time of rising prejudice and acts of violence against Asian and Asian-American people, this appalling crime exacerbates anxiety and fear. With deep regret that we are in such a time, I call on everyone to reject hate and violence, and to offer support to all Asian and Asian-American members of our community.” He further noted, “I encourage any student who needs support to take advantage of crisis counseling and other services available through our Health & Wellness Center, [HWC] detailed on this web page. I also encourage faculty and staff to seek support through our Employee Assistance Program.”
When asked about their reactions to President Schutt’s email, Yanagiba stated, “we were disappointed by how [un]supportive the school was, especially with the email sent out by President Schutt. It was very dismissive almost. We felt as though they didn’t really care about the Asian community at all. She further noted, “I’m not trying to compare it to the [Black Lives Matter] movement, but th[at] response was overwhelming from the school in comparison to the Atlanta shooting. [Schutt] just told us, if you need help go to the HWC and that’s it.” However, Yanagiba noted that “because we never went out of our way to talk about this to the school, it was very new to them, so it took some time to warm this idea up . . . it is a learning process on both sides.”
Recently, Yanagiba shared that AAPI members of the campus community are working on creating an empowerment group for Asian students, an effort that “the school respond[ed] to very well.” She noted, “the [Office of Intercultural Relations], the Dean of Students Office and several other depts have been very supportive of the making of an Asian empowerment group on campus and celebrating AAPI heritage month.” However, while Wang agreed that the “Office of Intercultural Relations and others have been supportive,” he was disappointed in the lack of “any direct reach[ing] out of support to our individual students.”
Further, while Yanagiba highlighted the rise of anti-Asian sentiment in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, she was quick to point out that anti-Asian hate is not a new phenomenon. Yanagiba stated, “it didn’t start just from COVID, it was always there but people would brush it off as kind of like a joke.”
Additionally, Yanagiba and Wang both shared microaggressions and instances of bias that they have faced as members of the AAPI community. Before the start of the pandemic, Yanagiba shared that “the stereotypes that come with being Japanese are really hard to get by, when you say Japanese all people really think of is Anime, Manga, and sushi, like there’s nothing else.” In her role as President of JCC, she shared that it has “been hard to recruit people sometimes because they would associate all these stereotypical subjects to our culture.” Additionally, Yanagiba spoke of an instance before COVID where “a stranger came up to me, who knew I was Japanese, and he said ‘thanks for Pearl Harbor.’ I was really taken aback by that comment.” Speaking about her experience in Lake Forest since the pandemic, Yanagiba noted, “once COVID hit I got a lot of weird glances from people in town [and] they were deliberately walking away from me.” Echoing Yanagiba, Wang stated that “people are actively avoiding me when I go into town.”
In their role as presidents of cultural clubs on campus, Yanagiba and Wang shared how they provided support to their members in the wake of the Atlanta shooting. The JCC held a recent meeting “touching upon the Atlanta shooting, anti-Asian hate, and microaggressions,” according to Yanagiba, while Wang’s United Asia has “referred our members to the counseling services at the HWC and resources at the Office of Intercultural Relations,” but Wang expressed his dissatisfaction with the availability of campus resources, noting, “the most I can do is to refer them, which is unfortunate because I believe we should have more resources.” He continued, “it takes too much effort to actually reach out for help . . . [t]hat’s something I believe shouldn’t be [on] the students who are already struggling to reach out and get the help they actually need.”
Both Yanagiba and Wang shared their efforts in encouraging their members to speak up about instances of anti-Asian hate. Yanagiba stated, “the Asian community is perceived as this model minority who doesn’t speak up and who strives for success—allegedly. Our members were very hesitant in even talking about this for fear of some sort of retaliation or consequence, but we assured them that there is absolutely no consequence. We have to talk about this and we need to bring it up. While the rise in anti-Asian hate is very unfortunate, it has also brought us very close to our members and they feel that they are family.”
Commenting on how individuals outside of the AAPI community can support those in the AAPI community, Yanagiba stated, “people . . . should realize that the Asian community is not made up of the stereotypical Japanese, Chinese, and Korean [individuals]. There are so many other countries . . . that are part of the Asian community.” She shared a recent instance where someone told her, “‘I’ve watched enough Anime to know your culture,’” a comment that Yanagiba used to emphasize her point that individuals should “try to appreciate more of the culture if you like part of the culture.” Additionally, Wang stated that non-AAPI individuals should “at least be aware when you are making the assumptions and ask yourself where they come from, maybe from the media [or] someone [you] heard—at least think about where the thoughts originated from. If you’re told that your comment or question is inappropriate, react by saying ‘sorry’ rather than saying, ‘that was a joke’ or ‘I didn’t mean it.’ You don’t get to decide whether you comment was appropriate or not—it’s up to whoever received the comment to decide.
