We stand in solidarity and acknowledge the pain, shock, and grief being felt in Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities locally and across the country. We send love and care to the families and friends of those senselessly murdered in Atlanta earlier this week, as well as the family and friends of members of our communities in California who have been killed or suffered due to anti-Asian racial violence.
Since the outbreak of COVID-19, attacks against Asian women, elders, and other community members have increased dramatically, illuminating the history and reality of scapegoating, racism, xenophobia, and gender-based violence against AAPI communities. Over the last year there have been 3,800 reported racist anti-Asian incidents across the country, most of them against women. We condemn this violence and it has no place in our communities.
Though only covered more recently in our media, this violence is not a new experience for AAPI communities in the United States and is rooted in hundreds of years of white supremacy, exploitation, poverty, exclusion, and violence. This violence against Asian American communities is part of a larger system of discrimination and racism present against all communities of color.
As a financial institution and community partner, we are committed to moving beyond statements of solidarity and denouncement. We are obligated to mobilize the full power and spectrum of our resources and networks to fight against white supremacy in our communities, organizations, and political institutions. We call on our peers, partners, and community members to do the same.
We join with AAPI communities calling for safety and healing for Asian American community members, and an end to white supremacy in all of its forms.
