On March 16, eight people died due to a shooting by a 21-year-old man at an Atlanta Spa. The man, later identified as Robert Aaron Long, claims his motives for the shootings were out of “sexual frustration.” However, six of the people shot were women of Asian descent which has sparked fears of anti-Asian racism. 

   Of course, this spike in hate crimes has been a result of the blame many people (globally) have placed on Asians for the pandemic. Part of this phenomenon was contributed by the previous president, Donald Trump, referring to the COVID-19 virus as the “China Virus.” Additionally, it has been a continuous trend for people to blame tragedies on a group of people outside your community, which is known as scapegoating. According to a statistic from the London Metropolitan Police, there has been a 96% increase in hate crimes against people of East Asian descent between June and Sept. 2020 comparative to that same time a year ago. 

   Furthermore, these anti-Asian crimes especially have an impact on younger people, causing immense damage to their self-identity. Many are fearing for their lives and the lives of their family.

   “From the recent crimes going against Asians, my self identity most definitely changed. I am now more confident on who I am and my culture than ever before because I feel that during this difficult time period, we can only rise up from hate. I don’t have many relatives here in the US, but I do fear for my mom and sister,” Pia Lopez (11) said. 

“This ongoing stigmatization can potentially be changed by being exposed to unbiased media and diversifying the people delivering these sources of media. Overall, an Ohio State University study stated that people who viewed Fox News as their primary source of COVID-19 news were more likely to blame Asian Americans for the virus.

   “I believe this stigmatization can be changed by using our voice. I feel that Asians are known to keep to themselves and accept whatever happens to them and there is some truth to that, to always make peace. But now is not the time for that type of mindset, our elders are being abused because pathetic people do not have the strength to take on someone their own size. The younger generation of Asian immigrants need to speak up  about how xenophobia will not be taken lightly,” Lopez said.