Daniel Dae Kim speaks out against anti-Asian racism as crimes surge in the US and Canada and Intro for Februar – LaineyGossip

Dear Gossips,

Just three more sleeps until Lunar New Year and the Year of the Ox, beginning on Friday, February 12. My ma, the Chinese Squawking Chicken, will have some thoughts to share in the coming days. They wont be as extensive as they were in years past, but if youre interested, there are a couple of takeaways that might be worth your while.

Lunar New Year is celebrated around the world in East Asian communities and, obviously, its typically a festive time. My ma has been prepping almost a month for this. Shes been buying sweets and pastries, shes been gathering ingredients for her annual Lunar New Year Buddhas Delight, a traditional dish that includes at least ten different ingredients and is usually served at the start of the year to symbolise purification and a fresh start. Mas making a two huge pots of it, Im getting one, and shell be making deliveries to a few friends. But of course what sucks is that usually wed be eating it together, because a major part of Lunar New Year is the gathering. Were big on feng shui in Chinese culture which means accumulating and protecting positive energy, and amplified in celebratory group settings. This year, in many homes, coming together is not possible. And even though my husband and I dont go anywhere and are confident that we arent a threat to them, my parents are in and out of the hospital for appointments all the time and ma does not want to see me indoors, or in close proximity, just in case. Our visits, then, are limited to her weekly soup and herbal tea drop-offs. I imagine its the same for so many other families, Asian or otherwise.

So while were trying, and ma is doing all she can to inject as much celebration and spirit into Lunar New Year this year, it wont be quite the same, and for some of us theres now an additional, even urgent, worry: anti-Asian racism. The United States is seeing a massive spike in anti-Asian hate crimes. Just last week, actors Daniel Dae Kim and Daniel Wu offered a $25,000 reward for information about this heinous act. Please note, as DDK writes on Instagram, its a disturbing and heartbreaking video. But its also the truth about whats been happening:

And its not just in the US. Here in Canada, where I live, theres also been a spike in anti-Asian racism. Just yesterday, in Toronto, our countrys largest city:

Two organizations are launching an educational resource on Tuesday to equip teachers with tools to help them address anti-Asian racism in Torontoduring the pandemic.

The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) and Elementary Teachers' Federation of Ontario (ETFO) produced the document, "Addressing Anti-Asian Racism: A Resource for Educators." It provides public school teachers with tips and suggestions on how to deal with the issue in virtual or physical classrooms.

More than 47 per cent of students identify as Asian in the TDSB.

Both the school board and the union said in a news release on Tuesday that there has been an increase in anti-Asian racism in Ontario, including violence, since the pandemic hit the province in last March after originating in China's Hubeiprovince late in 2019.

"Acts of anti-Asian discrimination are unacceptable and cause harm to the health, well-being and safety of educators, students, families and communities,"Karen Falconer, the TDSB director of education, said in the release

"This much-needed resource offers new approaches to learning and innovative actions to identify, name and address anti-Asian racism in partnership with families and communities."

On the other side of Canada, Vancouver reported a surge in anti-Asian hate crimes in 2020. Last week in Saskatoon, after refusing to wear a mask inside a Vietnamese restaurant, an enraged customer hurled racist slurs at staff before leaving. The victims of these crimes are often East Asian owned businesses and the elderly.

I worry every day about my parents, who are relatively independent and can still run errands on their own, and while dad isnt 91 years old like the man in Daniel Dae Kims video, it could have been him a spry little guy in a blue face mask. See?

Theyre at risk for COVID and theyre at risk for racism. And the same is true for so many others out there. Hopefully the Year of the Ox, which is not usually one of the more volatile signs of the Chinese zodiac, will bring more kindness and peace. On that note though

Get cleaning! In Chinese culture, ahead of Lunar New Year, we sweep the old year away to welcome the good luck of the new year. Clean until Thursday night. And then on Friday, no cleaning, as the new energy has arrived, its time to kick back and enjoy it.

Yours in gossip,

Lainey

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Daniel Dae Kim speaks out against anti-Asian racism as crimes surge in the US and Canada and Intro for Februar - LaineyGossip