IT’S OUR FAULT TOO
The many ways in which API communities have contributed to Anti-Black Racism
by Nayla Fazria
When the #BlackLivesMatter movement gained momentum after the death of George Floyd in May, I was— to say the least— shocked by the silence from the Asian community. A lot of my friends commented on my Instagram stories asking, “why are you so passionate about this? This is not our business anyway”. It seems that there is a common misconception in the Asian community that #BlackLivesMatter is an issue between black and white people only. That is simply not true because the truth is that we have unknowingly helped perpetuate and have contributed to Anti-Black racism. Below are some of the ways that we, as Asians and non-black POCs, have supported Anti-Black racism.
Friendly reminder that I do not speak for all Asians.
Cultural Appropriation — Maisha Z. Johnson simply defined cultural appropriation as “when somebody adopts aspects of a culture that is not their own.” Cultural appropriation can be seen in forms of fashion, music, makeup, hair, etc. Take a look at Indonesian artist, Agnez Mo. She has, on numerous occasions, posted pictures of herself wearing braids. Braids are an integral part of Black culture, and it was extremely ignorant of her to use a piece of Black culture to appear trendy. Unfortunately, Agnez Mo is not the only Asian artist to appropriate Black culture. If you search up Asian rappers, you will see that many of them have adopted pieces of Black culture, such as braids, dreadlocks, etc. A lot of Asians are guilty of using Black fashion, hair, and makeup for the sake of aesthetics. Carelessly using parts of Black culture that Black people were shamed for creating or having, and simply thinking that it is “cool” or “trendy” without understanding its cultural significance is cultural appropriation. And if you ever try to justify yourself by saying that you are instead “appreciating” and “showing love” to Black culture, let me ask you this; how can you “appreciate” Black culture and yet remain uneducated about their history? Throughout history, Black people were shamed and denied their culture and heritage. Fashion, hair, makeup, music, are all essential to their identity, and it is extremely disrespectful for you to use that as an aesthetic.
Using AAVE and doing a “Black accent” — Using AAVE (African-American Vernacular English) or doing a “Black accent” with the sole reason of being trendy or funny is straight-up racist. Carelessly using the language of someone else’s culture is actually another form of cultural appropriation. This is different from learning a language. While learning languages is a form of appreciation, using terms from AAVE and/or do a Black accent just to be trendy, cool, funny, or to simply imitate the way Black people talk is a form of appropriation. An example of this would be rapper Rich Brian. Before he was known as Rich Brian, there was a lot of controversy surrounding his previous stage name: Rich Chigga. He explained that the second word was a combination of the word ‘Chinese’ and the N-Word. In early 2018, he apologized for his poor choice of words and officially changed his name to Rich Brian. Another example would be Awkwafina. Though she is no doubt an icon of Asian American representation, it would be useful to note that she has numerously used Black aesthetics slang in her initial rise to fame. Though they have both apologized for their actions, it was still problematic and ignorant for them to borrow the language of a culture that isn’t theirs, making a mockery of it / stereotyping it, and then profiting off of it.
Using the N-Word — How many times does this need to be explained? The N-Word was a slur that was used to degrade and oppress Black people. Over time, the word has been reclaimed by the Black community and has become a word that holds so much cultural and historical significance to them. Despite this cultural reset, though, the N-Word is still a word that carries a history of oppression and racial discrimination against Black people that is still very much present in today’s society. So the next time you even think about saying the N-Word, remember that by saying it, you are taking away the power that the Black community has fought so hard to reclaim and diminishing the value of what they’ve worked to achieve.
Preferring lighter skin tones compared to darker skin tones — How many times have you seen your favorite Asian celebrity advertise for skin-whitening products? How many times have members of your family commented on your skin tone? It seems to be a shared thought in the Asian community that whiter equals better. This type of mindset is actually more damaging than you think because it teaches us to look up to people with light skin and to look down on those with dark skin. In Indonesia, people with dark skin are often called “dekil”, which literally translates to “dirty”. Don’t you see how wrong that is? It creates this idea that someone’s skin color will determine their position in life, and not only is this extremely superficial but also racist and colorist as well. Preferring lighter skin tones creates the idea that the more you look, speak, and act like a white person, the more accepted you will be in your community, and also vice versa. This leads us to associate white people with success, wealth, and safety and associate black people with poverty, failure, and danger.
Viewing Black people as “dangerous”. — Friendly reminder that it was an Asian man who called the cops on George Floyd on the 25th of May, 2020. This racist mindset is what leads to the murder of innocent Black people. This includes associating the presence of Black people with danger, being suspicious of Black people for no valid reason, and describing Black neighborhoods as “ghetto”. So, how did we come to share this racist mindset? From the perspective of a foreigner, it’s not that hard to succumb to the racist system that white people have created and adopt the view that black neighborhoods are more dangerous compared to white neighborhoods. This is also what leads us to constantly look up to white people and look down on Black people and to associate their races with opposing ideas.
Not holding figures from the Asian community accountable and dismissing their racist behaviors — Stop dismissing the racism that is prevalent in our community and start holding racist and ignorant Asians accountable. A phrase that is commonly used to excuse the racist behaviors done by Asian people might be: “Stop cancelling them! They live in (country), they are not educated about these things!” I’ve seen this phrase used to excuse ignorant Asian figures who don’t live in the U.S. Personally, as an Asian who does not live in the U.S. myself, I find the phrase to be belittling and insulting. It basically implies that we are too stupid to understand the social issues that exist beyond our continent. These people are ignorant, not uneducated; there is a difference.
Comparing the struggles between our communities — Trust me when I say that doing this will do absolutely nothing to eradicate the racial discrimination that both of our communities still face today. Comparing our struggles is just as harmful as saying “#AllLivesMatter” and will only create a rift between our communities. If we want to establish change and eradicate racial injustices, our communities must unite; we have to listen to each other’s voices and empower one another.
Racism is taught and learned; therefore, through sheer will, it can be unlearned. We must recognize the internal biases we have so that we can educate ourselves. Identify the biased individuals in your community and call them out on their ignorance. The longer we stay silent about this, the more we are guilty of preserving the injustices that exist in the world.
I’m sure you have all heard this phrase many times, but I’m going to say it again. It is not enough to be Non-Racist, you have to be Anti-Racist. In order to create a better society for everyone, we have to actively fight against the oppressors and those who perpetuate inequality. Educate yourself by learning and listening to oppressed voices. Educate others by spreading awareness and calling out ignorance. Societies cannot change if the people do not.
Sources:
The Jakarta Post. “Agnez Mo Accused of Cultural Appropriation over Hairstyle.” The Jakarta Post, 14 Aug. 2019, www.thejakartapost.com/life/2019/08/14/agnez-mo-accused-of-cultural-appropriation-over-hairstyle.html.
Johnson, Maisha Z. “What's Wrong with Cultural Appropriation? These 9 Answers Reveal Its Harm.” Everyday Feminism, 26 Oct. 2017, everydayfeminism.com/2015/06/cultural-appropriation-wrong/.
Kim, Michelle. “30+ Ways Asians Perpetuate Anti-Black Racism Everyday.” Medium, Awaken Blog, 13 June 2020, medium.com/awaken-blog/30-ways-asians-perpetuate-anti-black-racism-everyday-32886c9b3075.
Makalintal, Bettina. Awkwafina's Past Makes Her a Complicated Icon of Asian American Representation, 25 Jan. 2020, www.vice.com/en_us/article/pkeg9g/awkwafinas-past-makes-her-a-complicated-icon-of-asian-american-representation.
Ofiaza, Renz, et al. “Rich Chigga Officially Changes His Name to Brian.” Highsnobiety, Open Menu Highsnobiety Logo All News Black Lives Matter Style Sneakers Summer Sales Shop Search, 1 Jan. 2018, www.highsnobiety.com/p/rich-chigga-name-change-brian/
Comments