Let’s Stand Together: The Myth of POC solidarity – Klaudia Oey

Let’s Stand Together:

THE MYTH OF POC SOLIDARITY

Klaudia Oey

CONTENT WARNING: RACISM, MURDER, ANTIBLACK RACISM, POLICE BRUTALITY

On May 25, George Floyd, a Black man, was murdered by Derek Chauvin, a police officer at the time, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Writing this almost a month after this incident, the flame that was sparked from this incident has yet to die out. People from countries all over the world have taken to social media and the streets to march, protest and riot for the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. Here in Perth, we saw massive turnouts at the Black and Aboriginal Lives Matter protests too. As a Chinese person, a non-Black person of colour (NBPOC), it’s been, to put it nicely, eye-opening to see the response of the people in my community.

Anti-Black racism in the Asian, and more specifically Chinese, community is present and painfully obvious. It is impossible to ignore. A few months ago, we were battling anti-Asian racism because of the breakout of COVID-19. The news stories of fellow Asians being beaten up on the train, yelled at, and generally discriminated against angered and terrified me. On social media, countless posts were being made and shared in our community, condemning the racist behaviour. Fast forward to a month ago, where had this voice gone? There was radio silence. My Asian peers had barely spoken up about the tragic death of yet another innocent Black man despite the sudden surge of advocacy online. Your silence is deafening. It’s been said a lot this couple of months, but I will take the time to say it again: you cannot afford to be “apolitical” in these times. There’s never a time where fighting for the basic rights of other human beings should be considered a political stance that you can just decide to not comment on. I will never understand how someone sees the video of George Floyd, hears of the countless Black people murdered, and chooses to comment on the rioters, or even worse, say nothing at all. You cannot turn a blind eye to this. You must not turn a blind eye to this. If we stay silent, we perpetuate anti-Black racism. We all bleed the same blood and have the same flesh, to turn away from the cries of Black people mourning their children, parents, dead is truly an act of heartlessness.

I have done a lot of reflection from my perspective as a NBPOC, and come to a few major conclusions.

1. POC solidarity is a myth. Growing up as a Chinese person in Singapore, I have heard countless racist remarks made about Malay, Indian, and Black people. I had internalised the racism and it’s been a continuous journey in unlearning those ill beliefs and learning how to be a better ally. Learning this about myself was embarrassing and I’ve realised that I have made insensitive jokes too. I actively acknowledge these mistakes and make an effort every day to change my mindset and language. POC solidarity does not exist, and only comes up when it is convenient for our community. True POC solidarity is standing up for Black people simply because they are people- asking nothing in return, because we are doing what is right.

2. Appropriation of Black culture. How many Asians have you heard use the N-word? I can’t even count the number of times I’ve seen my Asian peers throw it around flippantly. Some of them justify themselves by saying that they only say it when listening to rap music, which is ignorant. We are not Black, and therefore should never use the N-word, no matter the context. I don’t care if your friend gave you the “pass”. You’re not “from the hood”, Kevin Nguyen. The picking up of African American vernacular English (AAVE) is very common in our circles, yet Asians continue to be anti-Black in our beliefs. We cannot continue to appropriate historically Black language, music and style while perpetuating racism against the Black community, otherwise we are taking advantage and letting the cycle of discrimination continue.

3. The older generation. This past month has been a great opportunity to bring the conversation of racism to the table with my family. However, this has proved to be increasingly frustrating. When I tried talking to my parents about the BLM protests, police brutality and systemic racism against Black people in America and Indigenous people in Australia, I was quickly shut down. My thoughts and opinions were met with constant counter-arguments. That’s when I finally realised the power of internalised racism and time. Though I know my parents try to be openminded, being brought up in an environment that teaches you anti-Black sentiment will stay with you for life. It is exponentially hard to change those views when you’ve lived with them for 50 years (but not impossible, so I’ll always try to annoy the living hell out of them with my activism).

So why is it important for us as NBPOCs to stand up for Black people? Asians benefit from being a ‘model minority’. We have been stereotyped as “intelligent” and “hard-working”, while Black and Indigenous folx have been tagged as “lazy” and “uneducated”. It’s because of this unfair thinking that we should stand up with them, amplifying their voices and hurt. Standing up for Black and Indigenous people of colour (BIPOC) is essential to showing our support. Use that big following of yours on Instagram to spread the word and get more people to sign petitions and donate to people who truly need it. If you have a platform: use it for good, your bubble tea and KBBQ post can wait for another time. Staying silent in times like this is taking the side of the oppressor, there can be no neutral ground in a fight for human rights.

But speaking up is merely not enough; it is performative activism on its own. To be a good ally, our actions need to add emphasis to our words. Sign petitions, donate to charities and organisations (if you can afford a large bubble tea, you can donate), have those uncomfortable conversations with family and peers, and most importantly, educate yourself. Education can come in many forms, be it reading books and watching documentaries, or even the simple act of not skipping an informational post or thread and taking a few minutes to genuinely read through it. Activism for equal rights is not a sprint, but a marathon, we cannot afford to forget about it in a few weeks’ time. Let’s stand together.