Advocates across the United States are condemning the rise of racist violence against the Asian American community. Last month, an 84-year-old man from Thailand was killed in San Francisco after being attacked while on his morning walk. Just days later, a 91-year-old Asian man was shoved to the ground in Oakland’s Chinatown. And in New York City last week, a 61-year-old Filipino man was slashed in the face while on the subway. Asian Americans say hate crimes and discrimination against their communities have been on the rise since the beginning of the pandemic. Some 2,800 incidents have been reported since last March, according to the group Stop AAPI Hate.

Activists and allies in Oakland held a rally over the weekend. This is Connie Wun, co-founder of Asian American and Pacific Islander Women Lead.

Connie Wun: “What about that violence of living in poverty under a system that doesn’t seem to care about our people? That’s the violence we need to answer to. The vigilantes coming out here calling for more police, I need you to answer to that violence. I want you to represent for that. Our communities are also suffering deportation. Answer to that violence! Our people are in detention centers for indefinite amount of times. I need you there for that, too. And then, you’re not even accounting for the gender violence that our women are experiencing. I need you to account for that.”