March 25. Unity in Community North Mecklenburg will hold a Stop Asian Hate Peaceful Rally Thursday in the parking lot behind Cornelius Town Hall this evening.
The event, which starts at 6 pm, is in response to the attacks on Asian Americans in Atlanta last week.
“The murders of eight people in Atlanta, six of whom were Asian women, was not simply the random act of one individual, but yet another example of violence against the Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community and another example of White Supremacist violence and terror against people of color. Over the past year alone, according to the Stop AAPI Hate National Report, there have been nearly 4,000 documented anti-Asian hate incidents nationally,” Pam Jones, one of the organizers, said in a prepared statement.
The full statement:
Unity in Community North Mecklenburg Denounces the Attack on Asian Americans in Atlanta and Anti-Asian Violence Wherever and Whenever It Occurs.
In October 2019, Unity in Community (UiC), along with other justice-minded organizations, held a Stop the Hate Rally in Davidson. We had witnessed the hatred and increasing violence against many of our fellow human beings simply because of who they are, where they come from, how they worship, or who they love. We called upon every person in our community to stand up in support of our friends, neighbors, colleagues, and anyone in our community who feels unsafe or unwelcome. We committed to denounce hate in any form and many of us signed a community pledge to honor this commitment.
Last week, the murders of eight people in Atlanta, six of whom were Asian women, was not simply the random act of one individual, but yet another example of violence against the Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community and another example of White Supremacist violence and terror against people of color. Over the past year alone, according to the Stop AAPI Hate National Report, there have been nearly 4,000 documented anti-Asian hate incidents nationally.
This includes members of the AAPI community being spat on, beaten up, slashed, verbally harassed, and shunned. Asians Americans have faced discrimination in the workplace, on public streets, on public transportation, in public parks, and in other public and private venues. Asian women are the victims 2.3 times more than men – the result of sexism and being seen as submissive and threatening at the same time.
Unfortunately, this is not new. Our country’s long history of racism, discrimination, and exclusion has targeted Black, LatinX, Native AND Asian people. Too many individuals and families in OUR community and in communities across this country are forced to live in fear, remain behind locked doors, and suffer not just the threat of COVID-19, but the trauma of racism and hate.
UiC stands in solidarity and support of our AAPI brothers and sisters and urges others in the North Mecklenburg community to stand with us and show your support. Our words and our actions matter. Our silence is complicit.
UiC invites you to join us on Thursday, March 25th, at 6pm, in the Cornelius Town Hall parking lot (behind Town Hall) to show your support!
For more information, contact Unity in Community at https://uic-nmeck.org/
