There Will Not Be Healing or Solidarity Between Asian Americans and Black Americans Until We Acknowledge Our Mistakes

We Asian Americans need to build trust and show respect first.

Photo by Womanizer Toys on Unsplash

I read Khadejah’s story, “Here’s Why The Relationship Between Black People And Asians is Complicated” and found myself thinking about it a lot. She raises several compelling points that I painfully acknowledge are true.

I kept thinking about her story and after leaving two comments, realized I still had more to say. So here I am writing my own story in response to the points she made.

What initially caught my eye, beyond the headline and subhead, was the large font, bolded statement:

Most Asians are just as bad, if not worse, than white people.

I think that’s largely true. Just because you’re a person of color doesn’t mean you’re a thoughtful, open-minded, anti-racist person. I have seen plenty of anti-Black racism from people of color.

Moreover, the pain of racism from another person of color may feel worse because we hope that such a person would be more sympathetic, having experienced racism themselves. Instead, it feels like being trampled on so they can say that at least…