Christie Kim, LMHC, LPC | Asian American Therapist for New York & Texas

Blog

Asian American Allyship in the Movement for Black Lives

Illustration by Rachel Maves

Illustration by Rachel Maves

In the wake of the deaths of many, including George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, the rising wave of the Black Lives Matter movement has called upon other communities of color to reflect upon and assert their roles within it. As a member of the Asian American community, I continue to reflect upon our position within the racial hierarchy, police brutality, and in perpetuating racism.

Asians in America

Some Asian Americans may question the call for our allyship because of our own experiences of racism, exclaiming, “But we get discriminated against, too!” Yes, we encounter ignorance, racism, and xenophobia, and have a deep history of discrimination in the U.S. The “Asian” umbrella is falsely treated as a monolith, obscuring the multitude of ethnicities, nationalities, identities, and languages, of Asian, Pacific Islander, Desi Americans (APIDA). Some of us, particularly East Asians, benefit from the “model minority” stereotype and experience the upward mobility of the American Dream, but so many others are rendered nearly invisible. There is a dearth of social services and representation for those who are from South and Southeast regions, refugees, LGBTQ+, undocumented, poor, don’t speak English.

But we would be wrong to equate our struggles to those of Black and Brown folks. 

We hold a privileged place within the racial hierarchy. We played a role in the killing of George Floyd. We are responsible for addressing and dismantling its structure.

Asian and Black Solidarity

Asian and Black folks have a long history of shared community and solidarity, and Asians have greatly benefited from the work of Black activists and organizations throughout history. Yet over the course of the civil rights movement, Asian and Black communities were pitted against each other by the model minority myth, allowing Asians to experience a new level of privileges which remained inaccessible to Black folks. In other words, Asians were rebranded as a minority success story in mainstream media to justify anti-Black racism. Such divide festered into the LA riots in the 1990s and continues in the complicity and anti-blackness in our own community today.

The racial wedge diminished our sense of shared humanity, but we need to cultivate a dialogue between communities of color. The anti-Asian racism we experience, particularly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, should deepen -- not threaten -- our empathy for other oppressed groups. Asian Americans have many reasons to empathize with the Black community as we hold our own unique history of intergenerational trauma, colonialism, immigration, discrimination, protest, and poverty. In 2018, both of our communities shared the goosebumps and tears of seeing ourselves reflected on the big screen in Crazy Rich Asians and Black Panther. Asian Americans have a responsibility to see ourselves in those more oppressed than us, and bear more of our shared fight against white supremacy and systemic racism.

Practicing Allyship

Allyship is defined as “an active and consistent practice of using power and privilege to achieve equity and inclusion while holding ourselves accountable to marginalized people’s needs” (Awaken). Asian American allyship is essential, and requires our own accountability for our role within the racial hierarchy. We have the responsibility to educate ourselves about how we have benefitted from systemic racism because remaining ignorant is a privilege in itself. It is necessarily difficult and uncomfortable. 

Practicing allyship also requires us to reflect upon who we are, who we want to be, and what authentic allyship looks like for each of us. We may feel both an internal and external pull to keep emotions at bay, be “good” citizens, stay in line and stay quiet. It is important to acknowledge such impulses and explore the role they play in our history, so they do not hinder our allyship. Working with a culturally responsive therapist can create space for courageous reflection upon our intersectional identities, personal experiences of racism, and unique roles within society. The practice of allyship inevitably involves taking risks, contending with blindspots, making mistakes, feeling the pain of our mistakes, and continuing the work anyway.

In my own work towards allyship, I’ve benefited from the work of countless individuals, communities, and organizations, that are far more educated and equipped than me. Below are several of those resources, specifically focused on self-education and tools for Asian American allyship and anti-racism:

Christie Kim