TRENTON – On March 31, New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus Chair Senator Ronald L. Rice issued the following statement condemning violence and bigotry against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders:
“As chair of the New Jersey Legislative Black Caucus, I speak for all members when I laud the passage this week, by both the state Senate and Assembly, of legislative resolution SR120/AR239 condemning abuse against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and recognizing the impact of AAPI heritage in our state and country.
“As minorities in this country, descendants of slaves, the NJLBC knows all too well the soul-searing impact of racism, not only through individual acts of hostility but also through the ingrown system of oppression that permeates American institutional structures. As such, we sharply condemn every act of violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, including hateful speech, and denounce all discriminatory practices against them. We value New Jersey’s one million AAPIs and the unparalleled contributions they have made in the arts, sciences, medicine, education, business, government, law enforcement, community and religious centers, and in neighborhoods throughout the state.
“AAPIs in America have long suffered from atrocious policies and biased attacks ranging from the reactionary internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans after the attack on Pearl Harbor, to the recent killings in Atlanta which have redirected our national dialog to our brutal history of bigoted, anti-Asian violence. First documented in 1871 when a Los Angeles mob murdered 19 Chinatown residents, Asian Americans have been targeted as scapegoats whenever our security or economy is threatened, even by something as seemingly innocuous as the success of the Asian auto industry.
“When things ‘go wrong’ – when people fear they will lose what they have or not get what they need – the human race seems to bifurcate into two different tribes: Those that seek to unify for solutions and healing, and those that seek to blame and punish.
“As COVID-19 quaked and then sent a tsunami of hurt across the globe, people everywhere snapped into formation to either be part of the solution or part of the problem. The exacerbators quickly blamed Asia for the pandemic and lashed out at Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
“Without the sliver of coping skills or insight necessary to see that we all belong to the same human family, they aligned themselves with the dog whistles and slurs interwoven into Trump’s pandemic updates. They felt justified enacting the centuries-old savagery of ‘racial supremacy.’
“It is yet another example of damaged people damaging people.
“The problem with oppression and social injustice is that in order to keep a group on the ground, you have to stand right there, with them. To make sure they don’t move, you can’t move. Racism is a lose-lose proposition that blocks everyone from rising together.
“As we stand at yet another crossroad for healing and reconciliation, the words of James Baldwin come to mind: A country is only as strong as the people who make it up and the country turns into what people want it to become … We make the world we’re living in, and we have to make it over.
“Hasn’t this past year taught us that our country won’t survive unless we see ourselves in each other? Waiting for some future solution to today’s challenge is foolish and irresponsible. The time to make our country over is now.”
