The Asian American community is grieving. Recently, we witnessed the murder of eight people in Atlanta, six of whom were women of Asian descent. Within desperate cries to #StopAsianHate, there is a dark storm brewing.
The recent attack connects to increased violence against Asian Americans in America. There have been 3,800 hate crimes against Asian Americans between March 19, 2020 and Feb 28, 2021.
A target is specifically on the backs of Asian women, who make up 68% of these reports.
This shooting in Atlanta opens up a larger conversation about violence against Asian American sex workers.
The hate crime in Atlanta resulted from a white man viewing the six women as sexual objects. If they were not Asian, he probably wouldn’t have seen them that way. He wouldn’t have assumed they were sex workers.
In 2017, Yang Song was killed when police raided the massage parlor she worked at. Song had attempted to report sexual assault against undercover officers within the massage parlor.
Instead of receiving support and protection, the police targeted her. They crucified her for her involvement in sex work, ultimately leading to her tragic death.
By continuing to criminalize sex work, we marginalize these women. We make them targets of further violence.
Many sex workers are also immigrants. There is a hatred towards sex workers and immigrants on top of being Asian and being women. We need to recognize the intersectionality of the hate in this crime.
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