No one in the entire world is unaware of what has happened recently. The news of the murder of George Floyd among other unarmed black people has been heard around the world, and absolutely no one in the world was left uninformed. Hell, even the Amish got involved in one of many Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests happening across America and the world. Fortunately, these events haven't turned political just like every other hot topic issue in the US, as I have seen people on social media who have conservative/Republican values support justice for George Floyd. The debate about peaceful protests and the kneeling of the anthem has been reignited, and conversations about white privilege and systemic racism and white privilege are free-flowing. But this isn't a black vs. white issue. This is a racists vs. everyone else issue. And as an Asian-American with left-leaning beliefs, I fundamentally believed and continue to believe that equality for all is a crucial issue long before the murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. As someone in the Asian community, we have had our fair share of racism (granted, I am lucky enough for it to not have affected my life), and one would think that we would be compassionate to other minority communities, but behind closed doors, especially in light of recent events, I have heard some shocking things.
While the repeated murders of unarmed black men and women has caused outrage internationally, I can only laugh when seeing stars like Priyanka Chopra post superficial quotes on Instagram. While they might mean well, many beliefs about the standard of beauty is deeply rooted in racist ideals. Among Indian/Desi culture, it is not ideal for women to spend too much time in the sun, for fear of getting even more tan than we already are. The belief is that being "too dark" is ugly, and in my language Tamil, we call this karuppu. Being karuppu means that now, you are not beautiful and are essentially lesser than your lighter-skinned counterpart. This beauty standard and mentality has translated over to the Asian community's overall feelings towards black people. While I notice that my generation does not entertain these feelings, I have noticed that older generations have thrown around the word karuppu when talking about the black community, and not in a good way.
Many people who have heard these racist comments might have chalked it up to "they were born in a different time", but I don't think that can be an excuse anymore. The reality is that while Asians deal with their own sets of racism, the reason we have had so much success in the past 5-6 decades is the extensive civil rights work of the black community in the 60's, particularly through the Immigration Act of 1965. This act allowed highly educated immigrants who would positively contribute to the US economy into the US. So while racism has been a roadblock to our collective path of success, we don't have 400+ years of systemic oppression working against us, and the Republican talking point of "pulling yourself up by the bootstraps" has been fairly accomplishable.
To my fellow Asians, I, like many children of immigrants, am so incredibly proud to call this nation my home. Despite its many flaws, I am so blessed to be granted many opportunities that I otherwise would not have if my family had decided to remain in India. But as a community, we cannot simply own its many successes. We must own and recognize its failures, some of which are apparent right now. And as a community granted with many privileges, we must stand with those who paved the way for us, especially in a time where their wellbeing and rights, are quite literally, up in flames.
