MEC Officer Letter - APALA Letter of Support

Mar 19 - This week we witnessed another senseless attack by a gunman targeting innocent citizens. Eight people were murdered at three spas in Georgia, many of whom were Asian and immigrant women that were targeted at their workplaces. These killings revealed the vulnerability most workers face in America and brought to the forefront anti-Asian racism.

 

March 19, 2021

 

Ladies and Gentlemen:

This week we witnessed another senseless attack by a gunman targeting innocent citizens. Eight people were murdered at three spas in Georgia, many of whom were Asian and immigrant women that were targeted at their workplaces. These killings revealed the vulnerability most workers face in America and brought to the forefront anti-Asian racism.

These murders show how racism, ageism and sexism shape the specific ways that Asian women and the elderly members of these communities experience violence. Our entire AFA family is anguished by the horrific murder of eight people in Atlanta, Ga., on Tuesday, March 16th, including six Asian American women.

As Stan Kiino, AFA-CWA’s Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO representative points out, Asian workers are a vital part of our labor force and have often been unduly ostracized or mischaracterized throughout the pandemic, simply because of the origin of a virus. Politics and intolerable stereotypes have added fuel to a fire that needs to be extinguished.

As Union members and activists, we share the responsibility to work to prevent the spread of violence and hate and stand together in solidarity with our Asian American communities. 

Our condolences go out to the victims and their families, and we stand resolute that we need to raise awareness and bring about equality in our workplace and in our lives.

We stand together with our brothers and sisters of Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO and encourage you to check out the #WeKeepUsSafe: APALA’s Resource Guide on Anti-Asian Violence to learn more about how we can work together in the face of violence.

In Solidarity,

The United Master Executive Council