Join us on Saturday, March 27 from 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM PDT
for a Community Gathering to Reflect, Honor, and Process
hosted by TCA and facilitated by Women and Taiko
[ Please Register Here ]
Dear TCA Family,
“It is not by coincidence that Asian women have been disproportionately harmed … These women are our grandmothers, aunties, sisters, wives, partners, cousins, and daughters. They all are powerful and respected, and worthy of our love and protection.” (Statement from Oregon’s Asian and Asian American Communities)
Shock, grief, fear, and outrage can overwhelm us as details about anti-Asian attacks come pouring in. We at TCA have not immediately had the words to articulate all of our thoughts and feelings, but we do not want to remain silent. TCA’s heart, spirit, and love go out to the loved ones of the individuals whose lives have been taken through baseless hate crimes. We can only imagine the collective feelings of the community as we each continue to process our own personal feelings. We do want to say this to our community: check in with each other, take time out as others step forward to help, and be aware of over-exposure to the news. Acknowledging the need to take care of our own mental, physical, and emotional health right now is crucial. These horrific acts of hate can trigger harmful stress responses, so please take care as you do your amazing work.
We would also like to lift up these words from Tom Ikeda, Executive Director of Densho, The Japanese American Legacy Project: “Already, I see attempts to drive a wedge between Asian Americans and Black and brown communities who are also targets of racialized violence … But if there is one thing I’ve learned from our history, it’s that, in the words of Grace Lee Boggs, ‘the only way to survive is by taking care of one another, by recreating our relationships to one another.’” (March 2021, Densho E-news)
Acknowledging the need for each of us to make space to process and to take care of our own mental, physical, and emotional health right now is crucial. We are stronger together, but we can only share strength if we prioritize self-care.
- Taiko Peace
- AAPI Specific Resources:
- National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association
- Asian Mental Health Collective
- SAMHSA Hotline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357)
- Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Atlanta
- Bystander Intervention Training to stop Anti-Asian/American and Xenophobic Harassment
- Collective Statement – A Community-Centered Response to Violence Against Asian American Communities for individuals and organizations
- Committee Against Anti-AsianViolence
- Hate is a Virus
- National Asian Pacific American Bar Association Hate Crimes Task Force
- NAPAWF (National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum)
- Red Canary Song
- Re-Imagining A New World: Building Practices of Awareness, Activism and Anti-Racism as a Taiko Community
- Stand Against Hatred – Asian Americans Advancing Justice
- Stop AAPI Hate
We mourn and honor the eight individuals who lost their lives in the horrific Atlanta shooting, six of whom were women of Asian descent.
Hyun Jung Grant
Suncha Kim
Paul Andre Michels
Soon Chung Park
Xiaojie Yan
Delaina Ashley Yaun
Yong Ae Yue
Daoyou Feng was just starting a new chapter, having only recently begun working at Young’s Asian Massage. Hyun Jung Grant was a single mother with a young spirit who liked to take her two sons to the aquarium or the mall on her free days. Suncha Kim was a grandmother who enjoyed line-dancing in her spare time. Paul Andre Michels was a loving sibling to 8 other brothers and sisters. Soon Chung Park was caring of their co-workers, often preparing meals for them, and loved to dance. Xiaojie Tan was a sweet, kind, giving person who was tremendously proud of her daughter. Delaina Ashley Yaun was a determined, outspoken lover of gospel music who cherished family. Yong Ae Yue loved to introduce friends to home-cooked Korean dishes and Korean karaoke music.
We learned all of this from stories that have been shared online and in the news by friends and family because we no longer have the opportunity to learn it from each person themselves. Each person was robbed of the opportunity to continue writing and sharing their own story, through their own lens, in their own words. We endeavor to continue learning the names and stories of each victim of any hate crime.
We play taiko as a voice to express what we aren’t always able to articulate.
TCA would like to collectively share the voices, solidarity, hearts, and spirit of the taiko community. We have the resources to provide including ZOOM and administrative hands; if you have ideas about how we might connect with one another during this challenging time please let us know (TCA Board of Directors, TCA Staff). We will be partnering with Michelle Fujii and Karen Young from Women and Taiko to create a virtual space to process and be in ceremony to honor the victims this upcoming Saturday, March 27th from 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM PDT. Please register here to receive the link if you would like to attend.
Please be good to each other, and please be good to yourselves.
With love and in solidarity,
The Taiko Community Alliance Board and Staff