Over the last year, the Asian community has experienced an increasing amount of verbal and physical acts of discrimination and hate as a direct result of the onset of COVID-19. In fact, Anti-Asian hate crimes increased by nearly 150% in 2020*. These violent acts committed against the Asian community are horrifying and unacceptable.
Racism and cultural intolerance have no place at Bazaarvoice. We will continue to create safe spaces and open up dialogue to ensure that we continue to uplift all our colleagues. We also strongly believe in doing our part to speak out against injustice and racism in all its forms. While Anti-Asian hate crimes and attacks have been on the rise over the past year all over the globe, the Asian community has faced discrimination and persecution for far longer, and it is past time that we denounce this issue that has gone unacknowledged for too long.
To help #StopAsianHate, Bazaarvoice will be making a monetary donation to support Asian communities. We will also be working closely with our Diversity Equity, & Inclusion leaders and other allies to provide more resources for employees to take action, donate, educate themselves, and inspire real change. We’ve provided resources below, as a starting point:
Asian Americans Advancing Justice
NAPAWF – National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum
Asian Family Support Services of Austin (AFSSA)
Now more than ever it is important that we listen and learn. We will continue our ongoing employee-led ‘Uncomfortable Conversations’ series to empower and educate all of our employees. Through this series over the last year, our employees from underrepresented communities have shared their stories and experiences with their colleagues through panel discussions. We will also run internal workshops as part of our DE&I efforts to enable us all to become better allies and help unpack unconscious bias.
Lastly, we encourage everyone to take the time to check in on your friends, family, and colleagues. Also, simply having conversations with those around you and recognizing that the issue exists helps enormously. Together, we can drive change.
Thanks for listening,
Keith
*According to data compiled by California State University’s Centre for the Study of Hate and Extremism.
