Last August, the death of Michael Brown re-awakened us to how our justice system is failing the black community in America. The tragedy led us to examine the continuous crimes against black lives, including Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, John Crawford and countless other individuals who died at the hands of the police force, illuminating a pattern of criminalization, institutional violence and political exclusion of African-Americans. Michael Brown’s death is not new or unusual, and neither is the lack of judicial accountability in this case.

As communities across the nation organize to protest, demand policy change, grieve and otherwise grapple with Darren Wilson’s non-indictment, we need to reflect on our role as Asian-American students in St. Louis in this momentous time. While other marginalized groups have joined the Ferguson protests, Asian-Americans as a community have been largely silent. Police brutality and state-sponsored violence are transnational and multiracial issues in which we have a stake.

A national narrative of success fabricated and spread by popular media coupled with discrimination toward Asian-Americans as people of color has dominated our history.

Asian-Americans are commonly assumed to be inherently smart, hardworking, quiet, passive and expected to assimilate to American cultural norms. These stereotypes give us privileges that insulate us from being characterized as lawbreakers, and we feel the need to maintain the status quo.

The model minority myth gives us this privilege but simultaneously oppresses us because we have internalized this myth; we see ourselves as the “good” minority, which prevents us from creating solidarity with other people of color. Because of this myth, anti-black racism and a strong belief in a meritocratic society permeate our community and have been used to justify our absence from this movement.

We need solidarity now. During the civil rights movement, blacks and Asian-Americans stood alongside each other against the wars in Vietnam and Korea. Now, we must relate these historical narratives to our own, given our position in St. Louis and the United States. We are a powerful community here, as we make up a significant part of the Washington University student body. We must resist from being insular and feeding into the model minority myth, but instead support other communities of color in their struggles. We must not let ego, unfamiliarity or prejudices hinder our striving toward allyship.

Being an ally is defined as an individual holding a dominant identity that actively questions and rejects systems that oppress marginalized populations. Our allyship is nuanced because we maintain a minority identity but have power in many circumstances that the black community does not have—here we need to step up with our support.

We have thought of allyship in two different forms: internal and external. Internal allyship focuses on developing the self, and external allyship involves interactions between the self and the community.

“Internal” allyship includes:

• reflection, recognition and the development of a critical consciousness of the privilege inherent within the Asian-American model minority status
• self-education by reading articles and watching diverse media outlets to stay informed
• developing personal opinions on race relations issues

“External” allyship includes:

• physical presence in the protests and dialogues on and off campus
• talking to friends and family members—especially older generations that may not discuss allyship for the black community

Internal and external approaches are a start to supporting the global struggle for black radical liberation. This by no means is an exhaustive list of all the ways to be an ally to the black community. It will always be a work in progress that will be difficult and involve engaging outside of your comfort zone.

A self-identifying ally should not feel obliged to engage in every single action on these lists. Our call to action is to ask you to engage critically with this list, find what best resonates with you and engage in the movement in the way you see yourself fit.

In Solidarity,

Asian Pacific Islander American Initiative (APIAI)

Amy Wen, Daniel Sun, Delia Shen, Heidi Chiu, Madhanamenaka Pandian, Nancy Yang and APIAI members

Ashoka Exec

PL4Y Exec

Asian Music Association Exec

Chinese Students Associate Exec