By Harshiyne & Joelle
Social media is a very powerful tool when it comes to the dissemination of information. While there have been many good movements and initiatives that have been spread through social media, it can be a double-edged sword too. Where there is positivity depicted in the media, there will always be slander that co-exists. We want to draw awareness to a recent phenomenon, known as Anti-Asian violence.
This movement is a campaign against unprovoked violent attacks spurred by prejudice and hate towards the Asian community. It is backed not only by Asians but also by those who condemn these acts spurred on by racism. Advocates and brands have been making use of social media to garner an audience for the movement.
For instance, Netflix has been actively posting messages that support the Asian-American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community on its social media platforms such as Twitter and YouTube.
Meanwhile, Nike has shared a #StopAsianHate video on its social media platforms.
The role of the media
The sudden rise in Anti-Asian violence can be attributed to many factors and the role of the stereotypical portrayals in the media cannot be downplayed. These media portrayals have had a hand in perpetuating negative stereotypes of Asians such as harmful rhetoric stigmatising the pandemic to be blamed on the “Chinese”, which led to many offline hate crimes against them, including immigrants in other countries. The Conversation noted that traditionally, Asians are portrayed as the “perpetual foreigner”, who do not fit in with the community, and as the “model minority” – upwardly mobile and eager to fit in.
When it comes to “appreciation” of Asian cultures by non-asians, sometimes it may borderline on appropriation instead. In our local context, Singaporean netizens were outraged when a foreign student studying in a local university posted a picture of her pulling back her eyes, accompanied with an asian slur as her caption. She also wore a sexualised version of the cheongsam, a traditional mandarin gown in the post.
Such events just show the overt hypersexualisation of the Asian identity. Be it in pop culture or otherwise, stereotypes such as how Japanese women are often depicted as docile and subservient. These generalisations are in turn, a form of anti-Asian hate. Such stereotypes are harmful as they can change the way asians are viewed and treated, negatively. It puts them in constraints that are hard to break out of when it becomes a commonplace belief. Though it may appear as less violent or overt, viewing asians as nothing more than “exotic” sex symbols is dehumanising.
Since the COVID-19 outbreak, there has been a surge of hate crimes blaming asians for the virus, hurling racial slurs and even getting physically violent towards innocent members of the public. The misinformation that has spread around the web is shocking, and proves to be the motivation behind such atrocious attacks against Asians.
The Asian community has been banding together to stand against these hate crimes. The #StopAsianHate movement trended #1 on Twitter and serves as a voice for Asians to speak up about their experiences of being the target of malicious racial slurs and even assaults against them due to the colour of their skin. Rising South Korean group, BTS, took to Twitter to share their own encounters with racism that included enduring expletives and mockery for how they looked. Their tweet mentioned, “What is happening right now cannot be disassociated from our identity as Asians,” and it garnered 3 million retweets. With that level of exposure and power, the movement was definitely a great step in the right direction, of trying to bring the stories of the marginalised to light.
In Hollywood, Disney has released a new children’s movie, “Raya and the last dragon”, in March 2021. Their take on Asian representations is colourfully depicted, with an emotional storyline at its epicentre. Heavily inspired by Southeast-Asian culture and landscapes, Kumandra is the enchanted realm where the main character, Raya, goes through different challenges and triumphs them. This is definitely worth noting as it sheds light on lesser featured aspects of Asian cultures other than the usual focus on East Asians such as films set in China or Japan. This film depicts its Asian lead Raya, along with the supporting characters, as strong warriors that can take charge of their fate. The designs for these characters are neither racy nor stereotypically portrayed, making this film commendable.
There may never be a one off solution to racism but as society progresses, all these efforts are already a commendable step forward. With determination and the Asian community standing together, the fight for the safety and peace between different races will continue.
