NACADA Statement and Resources on Anti-Asian Violence

 

Dear R2 Family,

Yesterday, NACADA put out a statement on anti-Asian violence. We understand that there are many advising professionals who are not members of NACADA, and there are many NACADA members who opt-out of receiving emails. Still, it is important that we share this message with the larger group: "NACADA condemns all acts of racism and hate and stands in solidarity against hatred, racism, xenophobia, misogyny, and all forms of discrimination and violence."

Let's stand with our colleagues and students, especially those within the Asian, Asian-American, and Pacific Islander communities. Let's take care of one another and ourselves, and continue the conversation and actions against all identity-based violence. 

The full message is below:

Last Tuesday evening, six Asian women -- Daoyou Feng, Hyun Jung Grant, Suncha Kim, Soon Chung Park, Xiaojie Tan, and Yong Ae Yue -- were among eight people murdered in three locations in the Atlanta area.This horrible tragedy is only one recent incident of violence against Asians, Asian-Americans, and Pacific Islanders in the United States and throughout this nation’s history. Nearly 3800 incidents were recorded by Stop AAPI Hate’s reporting center from March 2020 to February 2021, and hate crimes against the AAPI community increased nearly 150% in 2020 according to the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University-San Bernardino. Each act of violence reminds us again that we have not moved past injustice and cruelty against the AAPI community.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, members of the Asian community and individuals of Asian descent have faced amplified hate, violence, and aggression demonstrating how the response to COVID-19 has been deeply racialized. It is not enough to only acknowledge and decry this increase in violence, but also condemn all forms of identity-based violence, including those that are anti-Asian, anti-woman, and anti-immigrant. As members of the NACADA community, we condemn all acts of racism and hate. We stand in solidarity against hatred, racism, xenophobia, misogyny, and all forms of discrimination and violence.

We reaffirm our commitment to work towards positive and sustained change, as declared in NACADAʻs June 2020 statement on racial violence and police brutality. We understand that each member of our NACADA and campus communities has different needs at different times and places. We want to create spaces for people to feel heard, supported, and loved, and spaces for people to learn to be better allies, advocates, and supporters. We urge you to not lose hope or believe we are powerless to demand and create change. Each of us can take action now – in NACADA, in our institutions, and in our local communities.

NACADA recognizes the value and power of diversity among our members and the students who entrust us with their educational experiences. We know full inclusion and engagement is the ideal we have not yet reached, and we are taking continual steps to do better. As an advising community, we must come together from all our different institutions, different roles, and different places of understanding and desire to be better and through our unifying work create a better association so we can better serve our students who need us.  

As each of us continues to process the senseless deaths and other acts of violence stemming from systemic racism, we hope you will reach out to one another, share your feelings and experiences, engage in healing activities, and actively participate in antiracism and community building efforts in our institutions and communities. We have highlighted resources below, which we hope you find helpful as you navigate the days ahead.

Resources

• AAPI Women Lead
• Anti-Asian Violence Resources
• Anti-racism resources to support the AAPI community
• Asian, Pacific Islander, South Asian American (APISAA) Therapist Directory
• Asian Americans Advancing Justice
• Asian Mental Health Collective
• Hollaback! Harassment Prevention and Bystander Intervention training
• NACADA Global Connection Series: Xenophobia, Anti-Asian Racism, and Intolerance: How to support Students, Faculty, and Staff during COVID-19
• NACADA Reads: A Conversation on Advising Asian American Students
• National Organization of Asians and Pacific Islanders Ending Sexual Violence (NAPIESV)
• NAPIESV recommended readings
• Stop AAPI Hate Reporting Center
• Stop AAPI Hate: 5 Things to Consider when Experiencing Hate and 5 Ways to Help If You are Witnessing Hate
• 55 Mental Health Resources for People of Color

If you have ideas or recommendations for additional support or resources NACADA can provide, please contact President Cecilia Olivares at OlivaresC@missouri.edu, Vice President Megumi makino@hawaii.edu, or Executive Director Charlie Nutt at cnutt@ksu.edu.

Sincerely,

Shea Ellingham, Chair, Region 8
Locksley Knibbs, Co-Chair, Race, Ethnicity, and Inclusion Workgroup
Megumi Makino-Kanehiro, Vice President
Charlie Nutt, Executive Director
Cecilia Olivares, President
Cheri Souza, Chair, Region 9
Jessica Staten, Co-Chair, Race, Ethnicity, and Inclusion Workgroup