New data from Stop AAPI Hate (Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders) shows a historic rise in anti-Asian hate crimes in America. Nearly 3,800 incidents were reported during the past year – the year of the pandemic that stoked unfounded fears against Asian Americans.

The Atlanta attacks come amidst a surge in these crimes. They are yet another sobering reminder of the depths of our country’s social polarization and how far we’ve veered from our constitutional ideals to practice basic human decency.

Our hearts break for the victims of this tragedy. As a human service agency for over 171 years, Waypoint stands in solidarity to condemn all hate crimes and hate behavior in any corner of our country.

It is hard to believe–but not hard to understand hate crimes still happen here; pandering to ignorance and fueling fear in word and deed have been enabling hate since the beginning of time.

Can hate be eradicated in America? We might not have the answers, but we are committed to doing everything we can to be part of the solutions.

We know it takes unwavering commitment from all factions of society to drive lasting change. It takes practicing what we preach to be a part of that change. With a staff that is 330 strong, working in tandem with community partners, we have a good lead on role modeling human kindness and empowering lives in our community. But we can always do more.

At Waypoint, we promise to play our part, in practice and public policy, to build a culture of respect toward all, and work with equal devotion to every population we serve—optimizing the social landscape for each to realize America’s promise.

We call upon elected officials and community members to stand up against hate, and push for legislation that holds accountable those who commit such acts of hate and violence.

The time is upon us to dismantle systemic racism and undo the biases that prevent us from forming a perfect union—with peace, freedom, equal rights and opportunity, and justice for all. While we have work to do to fulfill our constitutional promises–and it won’t be easy to change perceptions along the way–we can start with the very thing we can’t do without and that is within our power now: the practice of being decent human beings.

#StopAsianHate #StandTogether #BeAGoodHuman #StopAllHate