"Not the Other"
/At the Stop AAPI Hate Rally on March 27, 2021 in Artesia, CA, I read the following poem titled, "Not the Other." I wrote it in reaction to the Atlanta spa shootings in which eight people were killed, including six Asian women. Yesterday, March 29, 2021, an elderly Filipina was brutally beaten on the streets of New York City in broad daylight. Nobody helped her. #StopAsianHate
“Not the Other”
by Rod Pulido
In Atlanta, eight people were killed, their families destroyed.
Another tragedy in a wave of hate we can’t ignore or avoid.
The gunman’s murderous actions were excused away
by the policeman who said, “He just had a bad day.”
Six of the victims were Asian women.
LISTEN to them.
Listen to their cries.
Asian women fear for their lives.
They are terrified and terrorized.
Because of a media that portrays them as hyper-sexualized.
Violence against Asians is nothing new, it’s our country’s age old sin.
It’s as American as the baseball bat used to kill Vincent Chin.
Every era brings new injustices and violence.
From Japanese internment…
To the Filipino workers murdered in the Watsonville Riots.
In 2021, Asians are being hunted, we live in fear and danger.
American history on endless repeat like a CD changer.
We must break the chain of violence.
Asians are not a virus.
Asians. Are not. A virus.
The true virus is hate, and that virus is taught.
Spread by a bastion of bigots that Trump’s America has wrought.
Racism is a symptom…
Of our biased school curriculum.
There is room in the classroom to teach our kids…
About David Ho, a pioneer in AIDS research, and all the good he did.
Or civil rights journalist Helen Zia, who was wise and courageous.
Or labor leader Larry Itliong, who fought for better wages.
If you don’t learn about your Asian sisters and brothers,
You will only see us as “the other.”
The situation may seem hopeless, but there are ways to help the cause.
Elect officials who will enact stricter gun and hate-crime laws.
In books, film, and television, support Asian representation.
And lobby for Ethnic Studies as a requirement for graduation.
To our allies, thank you for joining in our fight for justice.
For Asians will not prevail against hate if it’s just us.
We stand with the Black community who fight against similar threats.
Just as Yuri Kochiyama stood side by side with Malcolm X.
We need allies of all backgrounds, colors, and creeds.
To eradicate the weeds of hate and plant new seeds.
Seeds of peace, kindness, and understanding of cultures diverse.
To grow beyond an America that is hypnotized by hatred like a curse.
There is one truth America and the world must face.
We are all part of the human race.
Asians are not the other because there is no “other.”
We are your sisters. We are your brothers.
Say it with me!
Asians are not the other!
We are your sisters and your brothers!
Asians are not the other!
We are your sisters and your brothers!