We Call on Community

CPA Statement on the Georgia Shooting and Attacks on Asian Americans

Our hearts are hurting for the victims in Georgia whose lives were claimed too soon. We hurt for our Asian American community and families who have continued to experience violence. We know that many of us are not strangers to systemic violence. 

Many of you have already seen or heard about this act of violence, when eight people were killed at three spas in the Atlanta area. Six of the victims were Asian women*. They deserve justice and to be known in their life and not just in their death. Just yesterday, a Chinese woman also had to defend herself against a racist attack here in San Francisco. She was attacked along with another 83-year old Vietnamese man. These are just a few of the stories we have heard about. We know that these events are fueled by the same racist, sexist, xenophobic system that leaves our people feeling more unsafe than ever before.

We are hurt. We are angry. We are tired. We also know that in moments like this, we must call for action. We also need to come together to grieve and acknowledge the collective hurt and pain our community is feeling.

As an organization that has long centered and been powered by female-identified people, the heartbreak over the most recent attacks is especially palpable for those of us who have closely experienced both the power and the vulnerability of being Asian women and leaders in our community. Our members —many of whom are women, mothers living in the SROs, and young women — are risking their safety to go to work, providing childcare and caring for family members, navigating distance learning, and trying their best to preserve their mental health during these trying times. This is further exacerbating an already stressful time. 

The shooting in Georgia comes amidst a pattern of white supremacy, sexism and misogyny including the hypersexualization of Asian women, and the intersection of economic inequality where so many Asian immigrant women work in low-wage, high-risk jobs and risk their health and safety every day. 

All of us, including women and low wage workers, deserve to be safe. We deserve effective and long term solutions that will address the root cause of this issue. 

 *We are respecting the request from our allies in Georgia to not share the names of the women until we have received permission.