Call to stop Anti-Asian Racism - Statement by Councillor Amanda Yeung Collucci
I am deeply saddened by the recent increase of hate crimes targeting Asians happening in our community. It is very concerning that more individuals have faced discrimination since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and these types of attacks are not acceptable. Markham is one of the most diverse cities in Canada with a rate of over 50% Asian population and we are proud of our rich heritage and culture.
Anti-Asian racism and violence has a deep root in North America. More recently, a wave of attacks against Asians and more specifically, the elders, cannot be tolerated. The reports of hate crimes and discrimination against Asians are on the rise since the beginning of the pandemic with blame being placed on China. Terms such as “China Virus”, “Wuhan Virus”, “Kung Flu” along with hate speech targeting Asians is on the rise, not only in Canada, but around the world.
In order to fight this way of thinking, we need to work together to unite as a community to support the Asian community and take action to help stop the Anti-Asian racist acts of violence. It is important for us to speak up and report all types of hate crimes. We also need to bring additional awareness, education, and to call for an end to racism and discrimination against the Asian community.
Our law enforcement agencies have been leading this effort. I applaud York Regional Police for their immediate action and offering their support to our Asian/East Asian community as they are proactively safeguarding our communities from all forms of racism. The York Regional Police will be hosting a Diversity, Hate Crime Prevention seminar on Wednesday, March 31st, 2021 at 10:00am to cover a variety of topics and valuable information on combatting hate and racism. If you are interested to attend, please RSVP with my executive assistant, Fion Lau at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and we will send you the zoom details.
Together with your help and understanding, we will stop the hate, discrimination and Anti-Asian racism in our community.