United States President Joseph Biden Jr. must ensure the safety of all Asians and minority groups, including Filipinos, amid the recently increasing hate crimes against people of Asian descent in the US, Vice President Leni Robredo said on Monday, April 5.
In a statement, the vice president lamented the recent attacks against Asians in the United States, saying that they were “deeply concerning, and an appalling turn of events.”
“At a time when the world should come together in solidarity against the greater threat of the pandemic, Asians, some of them Filipinos, have been singled out as targets of rage and racial hatred. This has contributed to a climate of growing fear in an atmosphere already made volatile by COVID-19,” she said.
“Hatred has no place in any society that wishes to heal,” Robredo added.
The lady official said she was hopeful that the Biden administration “will ensure the safety of all Asians and minority groups, even as it works to address the deeper issues of racism and racial violence.”
“Towards this common goal, we stand as allies of the American people, behind a long history of friendship and a shared commitment to upholding democratic values and the dignity of every human being,” Robredo said.
Foreign media called the recent attacks on Asian-Americans “COVID hate crimes” as the spate of killings and attacks happen as some sectors of the American public blamed Asians for the spread of the coronavirus and their eventual loss of jobs, income, and lives.
Just recently, an elderly Filipino-American woman was attacked in New York City by a man whose mother was believed to have died from COVID-19. The elderly woman was walking down the street when the man suddenly kicked her in the stomach and continued to do so even as she fell on the ground.
Another elderly Filipino-American who was in a New York City subway was slashed in the face with a box cutter. This is not only happening in New York. Asian hate crimes are happening all over the US as California sets up additional patrols in Chinatown because of the growing assaults on Asians there.
In March, Biden urged the US Congress to pass the hate crime legislation. He also established a COVID-19 Equity Task Force committee to address and end xenophobia against Asian Americans.
During his first week in office, Biden also signed an executive action that banned the use of anti-China rhetoric in the federal government that was prevalent during the time of former President Donald Trump.