March 18, 2021
Wednesday, March 17 — As of today, there have been thousands of reports of anti-Asian hate across the country. Some of the most violent actions include the murder of 84-year-old Vicha Raranapakee in San Fransisco. And now, a shooting in Atlanta that left at least eight people dead, the majority of whom were Asian American.
The Angeles Chapter Executive Committee condemned hate crimes against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders during its February meeting. It adopted a resolution in support of Asian Americans facing Violence and Racism.
The values of the Sierra Club include social justice and equity. We lean into those values as we push forward against this most recent iteration of racially-motivated injustice.
RESOLUTION BY THE ANGELES CHAPTER OF THE SIERRA CLUB IN SOLIDARITY WITH OUR ASIAN AND ASIAN AMERICAN BROTHERS AND SISTERS EXPERIENCING RACISM AND VIOLENCE.
The Central Regional Group of the Angeles Chapter recommends that the Angeles Chapter Executive Committee adopt a resolution in support of Asian and Asian Americans Facing Violence and Racism
Whereas 23 million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders account for 7 percent of the Nation’s population in the United States;
Whereas as of the 2010 census, Asian Americans were 13.6% of California’s population;
Whereas California has the largest Asian American population in the U.S., and second-highest proportion of Asian American residents, after Hawaii;
Whereas AAPIs make up 15.4% and 21.4% of the population of Los Angeles and Orange Counties respectively;
Whereas the use of anti-Asian terminology and rhetoric related to COVID-19, such as the “China Virus”, “Wuhan Virus”, and “Kung-flu” have perpetuated anti-Asian stigma;
Whereas as of today, there have been thousands of reports of anti-Asian hate across the United States, including violence against the elderly;
Whereas some of the most violent actions, including the beating death of Vicha Ratanapakdee, have occurred in California;
Whereas the increased racially-motivated violence is a result of amped-up rhetoric, including by the former administration, and by our collective society’s failure to put a stop to the spread of such racist sentiments;
Whereas the hate crimes and discrimination are rooted in historical racism and connected to the history of violence and discrimination against Asian Americans, including the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and the Japanese American Concentration Camps of the 1940s among other shameful laws: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved That the Angeles Chapter Executive Committee—
- condemns and denounces any and all anti-Asian sentiment in any form;
- affirms that the Sierra Club Angeles Chapter stands in condemning hate and evil in all forms;
- recognize that the health and safety of all Americans, no matter their background must be of utmost priority;
- recommits Chapter leadership in building a more inclusive, diverse, and tolerant organization and environmental grassroots movement;
- reaffirms our existing efforts to make the outdoors safe for everyone, because everyone can benefit from time spent in nature;
- calls on our members and supporters to report incidents of anti-Asian violence when and wherever possible https://stopaapihate.org/