By now, you’ve most likely heard of the recent Georgia massage parlour shootings. With eight dead and communities across the United States traumatized, it is more than time to discuss the prevalence of racism toward Asian communities in the Western world. The implications of this issue affect the healthcare of these communities and the political and emotional atmosphere of North America. Various Asian-Americans have spoken against this issue, but let’s take a second to understand what medical disparities are common in these communities and how racism has worsened them.
Asians are the fastest-growing racial group in the United States. Many Asian ethnic groups have not been represented in research, however limited data proves that there are health disparities against Asians. 19.4% of Asian adults report being without a usual source of health care, compared to 12.9% of whites. Cambodians and Vietnamese Americans are three times more likely to skip doctor visits due to cost, as compared to all Asians. Cervical cancer screening rates are significantly lower among Asian American women in California compared to the general population. Asians also have a high prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Hepatitis B, HIV and AIDS, smoking, tuberculosis, and liver disease. (Pak 2020) As Asians face many disparities in the healthcare field, addressing these issues is important for everyone to access equitable care.
The Asian community has often been referred to as the “perfect immigrants.” When researching disparities in these communities, scientists have failed to distinguish between the various ethnicities in this broad umbrella term. This lack of clarity has perpetuated the myth that Asian Americans are physically healthy and financially stable, even though there are various ethnic groups that each face different disparities. There are many barriers between researchers and these communities, which have made classifying and understanding these ethnic groups much harder. The most well-known barriers are language and culture, health insurance, health literacy, and immigrant status (Kim & Keefe 2010).
Many Asian immigrants, especially of the elderly community, have difficulty or limited skills when speaking English, making language a significant barrier in accessing healthcare for many Asians (Mayeno & Hirota 1994). Thus, they cannot participate in research studies, and more essentially, they cannot properly communicate their health issues to their medical practitioner. Most hospitals have translators on standby, but messages can be lost in translation and language barriers ultimately reduce the healthcare system’s efficacy. Furthermore, it is often up to the children, who are generally well-versed with the English language, to communicate their parents’ health concerns. However, their role as a child can disrupt and cause tension in the healthcare setting as both the parent and child may not be comfortable speaking about specific health conditions. This is why hiring Asian-American experts who understand the languages and the cultures that come with them is key, as it allows for better communication and comprehension.
These accessibility barriers hinder the healthcare system’s access and efficacy for the Asian community, leading to more health issues and conflict between these two groups. The current pandemic has only worsened these barriers as anti-Asian crimes targeted towards these communities have risen 150%. Racism has always been present towards these communities, but after world officials labeled the disease as the “Chinese virus,” the metaphorical floodgates were opened. People now felt comfortable saying things they might never have before. Stephanie Cho, the executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice Atlanta, says: “Our ethnicity is now being called out in a hyper-politicized way that’s also being tied to being a perpetual foreigner and also to disease, which has a racist trope.” (Chenue Her 2020) This discrimination has always been present, but with the current political atmosphere, tensions have only risen.
This issue is prevalent in various countries such as Canada. As Canadians, it is easy to pretend that racism is only an issue that affects our neighbours, but there have been 891 reported incidents across Canada as of March 17, 2021 (Liu 2021). These numbers have only increased since the beginning of the pandemic, as reported by Statistics Canada.
The consequences of these crimes have made members of this community fear for their safety when leaving their house to simply buy groceries. Theresa Woo-Paw, a chair for the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, reported that “As members of the impacted communities, we feel the pain. Many of the people who are members of the impacted community also think whether we might be next, whether our children will be next, so that level of anxiety, that fear that has been increasing – it’s real.” We can no longer pretend that this issue is new or irrelevant because the consequences of these crimes are causing generational trauma currently.
With the spike in racism against Asians, especially during COVID-19, it is vital that we stand up to combat racism and discrimination. Six Asian women were killed when a gunman opened fire in three Atlanta-area massage parlours. An 84-year-old Thai man died two days after being shoved to the ground. A 91-year-old man was violently attacked when he was walking in Oakland’s Chinatown. So what should we do about it? One way we can combat racism against Asians is to raise awareness. You can raise awareness by educating yourself and others as well as reporting anti-Asian assaults through Stop AAPI Hate. Another thing we can do is to support local communities. You can go visit your local Chinatown or Koreatown and support business owners. If available to you, you can also volunteer to help protect the safety of elders. Additionally, you could stand in solidarity. It is important to advocate for Asian solidarity and seek change through community action. Last but not least, you can donate! If you are able to, you can donate to a victim’s GoFundMe or organizations that focus on community safety for Asians. (i-D 2021) Taking action to combat racism against Asians is important right now, as hate crimes are continually happening.
Asians have been and are continually facing racism and health care disparities every day. The spurge in racism during COVID-19 has only worsened these conditions for them. They have been murdered and attacked for simply walking in their own neighborhood and the disparities they face prevent them from receiving the care they need. It is time that we stand in solidarity with the Asian community as we listen and fight alongside them.
Written by Emaan Rana and Vic Kuang
Edited by Joyce Qian
References
15, P., & Authored by Caroline Pak. (n.d.). Health disparities among Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Retrieved March 23, 2021, from
Asian Americans fearful 'in SHOCK' after Georgia massage parlour SHOOTINGS | CBC News. (2021, March 19). Retrieved March 23, 2021, from
Barriers to healthcare among Asian Americans. (n.d.). Retrieved March 23, 2021, from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/19371910903240704
Cabison, R. (2021, March 18). What you can do about anti-asian violence: 'we are part of this country,' activists say. Retrieved March 23, 2021, from
Liu, S. (2021, March 18). Reports of ANTI-ASIAN hate crimes are surging in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic. Retrieved March 23, 2021, from
Yu, E. (2021, February 17). How to support Asian communities across the US. Retrieved March 23, 2021, from