A virtual forum on March 24 will confront hate and violence faced by Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander people across the country
Elon’s Division of Inclusive Excellence is working with Asian-identified students on campus to provide care, support and advocacy in the wake of recent hate crimes and speech. The efforts are in reaction to the horrific murders of eight people in Atlanta, including six Asian women, on March 16, along with racially motivated incidents that have taken place across the country over the past year.
“When we learned about the Atlanta murders, we immediately reached out to our Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander students and colleagues to provide support,” said Randy Williams, vice president and associate provost for inclusive excellence. “They agreed with us that the Elon community should come together in solidarity to commit to ending anti-Asian bigotry, racism, xenophobia and other forms of oppression.”
A community virtual forum will be held at 7 p.m., Wednesday, March 24, moderated by staff with opening comments from students Thida Kim ’21 and Chloe Yoon ’22. All members of the Elon campus community are invited to attend. Advance registration is required by clicking here. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
In addition, Elon’s School of Health Sciences will be hosting a student-led “Diversi-tea” event on the rise in anti-Asian violence, calling for an end to hate, discrimination and prejudice. According to Stop AAPI Hate reporting center, there were 3,795 reported incidents from March 19, 2020 to February 28, 2021. The event will be from noon to 1 p.m., March 24, in a parking lot tent outside the Francis Center on East Haggard Avenue.
Elon will provide opportunities to learn more about Asian and Pacific Islander history, culture and current affairs during the month of April, which is designated on campus as Asian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. The Center for Race, Ethnicity and Diversity Education (CREDE) will be announcing details of this year’s observance.