By Sam Cacas
Since publishing my first book, “BlAsian Exchanges, a novel” two years ago, I have often been asked to speak about the real-life common history of Blacks & Asians that is highlighted throughout my book. This includes the true story about Richard Aoki, a Japanese American, who was one of the founding members of the Black Panther Party, the NAACP’s opposition to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II, and Black and Asian American students joining protests to promote ethnic studies at college campuses in the 1970s.
The interest is generated by the fact that many of these transracial connections between both Asians & Blacks involve a specific history of collaboration that mainstream media and traditional academia ignore but most people – especially Asians & Blacks – want to hear.
I believe that Asians, Blacks and the rest of the community should keep this common history in mind and consider talking about it at future community meetings and social gatherings as we try to grapple with whether incidents like the April 16 killing of Tiansheng Yu are hate motivated or random crimes.
Hearing about our commonalities – be they political or social – helps break the ice and creates the necessary bridge to discuss issues like race that can be hard for any community to discuss, particularly given America’s hesitancy to take up such concerns.
Having worked as a community organizer on anti-Asian hate violence and other forms of hate violence issues in the ‘90s and ‘80s, I know that I would be asking the questions many in the Black and Asian communities are now asking: Should one incident or even a series of incidents represent how Blacks regard Asians? why didn’t the two Black suspects attack the numerous potential victims who are Black in the vicinity of 17th & Telegraph if they claimed they were out to attack the first person they saw? Asking these questions would help calm the tensions and at least tell everyone in both communities and the rest of the community that the law enforcement and elected officials seriously care about this incident and other incidents of anti-Asian violence in Oakland and throughout the Bay Area, delve into the neutral factfinding that needs to be asked to determine whether a discriminatory motive was involved. The whole community – and not just the Asian community that the victims are from – need to ask these questions when incidents like this occur. The police , media and other institutions that have an interest in such matters should be meeting with a broad array of civil rights organizations and interested individuals and discuss ways of convening large as well as small informal dialogue sessions that cover the commonalities and differences between both communities – not just fatal incidents like the Yu murder. We need to build unity by coming together at times other than the aftermath of criminal happenings so that we can speak up for each other and thus in the long-term prevent incidents like the Yu killing from happening to a Black or Asian victim in the future. From my organizing experience, I know that the above suggestion may fall on deaf ears so I am encouraging everyone to join my new “Better Black and Asian Relations” Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=112441975457925
Sam Cacas blogs regularly at http://blackwomanasianman.wordpress.com and is currently completing his next book, “Black-Asian Connections.” Please join his new “Better Black and Asian relations” Facebook page at
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=112441975457925
He also writes a frequent column on Black-Asian Unity at http://www.Asianweek.com
Meant to also say that fun things need to be done at the meetings like karaoke or talent showcases or dance parties and in the middle of the fun stuff have some serious things going on like interracial exchanges (not debates) on issues such as immigration, hate violence, etc. Really, no group wants one of their own accused of racial motivation for a crime and no group wants to be the accuser. But if one group feels targeted – no matter what the actual circumstances – and there is no prior history of both groups getting together for fun as well as serious things then you’re going to continue having what is going on in Oakland and the rest of the country. We need to use the internet social network sites to begin constructive, effective dialogues and work together on each other’s issues. So join Better Black and Asian relations
http://www.facebook.com/?sk=2361831622#!/group.php?gid=112441975457925
I am in full agreement with Mr. Cacas on such issues. It is unfortunate that there need be further pampering of race relations in our day and time; however, knowledge beyond stereotypical ignorance is something that is needed to see through the surface of such incidences.
We as a race, the human race, need to be able to have flexibility of mind and action when sorting out circumstances that place others and consequently, ourselves, in boxes. Our struggles are common in the history of life, and as shown, will continue until our dying breaths.
I, as an individual, do not want to be judged solely on the act of another individual just because we share a common skin color. I urge the Asian community to see this as a senseless act, brought about by a couple of senseless individuals, who just happen to perpetuate senseless lifestyle and/or limiting beliefs.
I, and others like Sam, will continue our walk to weaken the walls that momentarily divide our two tones, so that in the end, what really matters is the hearts of our faced obstacles, and eventual unity in spirit will rule the future. My mind and emotion might for-an-instant judge those couple of individuals who fell short of humanity for that second, but no matter what, my heart will never extend such feelings over the beautiful Black race. To do such a thing is to betray myself as both an individual and a imperfect human being.