Letters for Black Lives | Inaugural ENG Letter

Letters for Black Lives (lettersforblacklives.com) started as a crowdsourced letter for Asian-American children who wanted a framework for discussing issues of anti-Blackness and police violence with their immigrant parents. It’s quickly grown into a vibrant community with more than 200 contributors, 30 translations, and many more voices being shared through words, sound, and video.

MORE ABOUT THE LETTER PROJECT: https://lettersforblacklives.com/about-the-letter-ed27ea67eb2e?source=latest

MORE LETTERS (TRANSLATIONS, ADAPTATIONS FROM OTHER COMMUNITIES): https://www.lettersforblacklives.com

LETTER TEXT: https://lettersforblacklives.com/dear-mom-dad-uncle-auntie-black-lives-matter-to-us-too-e6351e4a0dd?source=latest

#blacklivesmatter #asians4blacklives

Mom,

Dad,

Uncle, Auntie,

Grandfather, Grandmother:

We need to talk.

You may not have grown up around
people who are Black, but I have

Black people are a fundamental
part of my life:

They’re my friends,

my roommates,

my classmates and teammates,

my family

Today, I’m scared for them

This year, the American police have
already killed more than 500 people

Of those, 25% have been black, even though
they only make up 13% of the population

Earlier this week in Louisiana two police
officers killed a man named Alton Sterling

while he sold CDs on the street

The very next day in Minnesota,
a police officer shot and killed

a Black man named Philando Castile

in his car during a traffic stop

while his girlfriend and her
four year-old daughter looked on

Overwhelmingly, the police do not face any
consequences for ending these lives

This is a terrifying reality that some of
my closest friends live with every day

Even as we hear about the dangers
that Black Americans face

our instinct is to sometimes point at all
the ways that we’re different from them

To shield ourselves from their reality,
rather than empathizing

When a policeman shoots a Black person
you might think it’s the victim’s fault

because you see so many images of them
in the media as thugs and criminals

After all, you might say,

we managed to come to
America and build good lives

for ourselves despite discrimination,

so why can’t they?

I want to share with you
how I see things

It’s true that we face discrimination for
being Asian in this country.

Sometimes people are rude to us about our
accents,

or withhold promotions because they don’t
think of us as leadership material

Some of us are told we’re terrorists

But for the most part, people
don’t think “dangerous criminal”

when we are walking down the street

The police do not gun down our children
and parents for simply existing

This is not the case for our Black friends

Many Black people were brought to
America as slaves against their will

For centuries their communities, families,
and bodies were ripped apart for profit

Even after slavery, they had to build
back their lives by themselves

with no institutional support –

not allowed to vote or own homes,

and constantly under the threat of
violence that continues to this day

In fighting for their own rights, Black
activists have led the movement

for opportunities not just for
themselves, but for us as well

Black people have been
beaten, jailed, even killed

fighting for many of the rights that
Asian Americans enjoy today

We owe them so much in return

We are all fighting against
the same unfair system

that prefers we compete
against each other

When someone is walking home and gets
shot by a sworn protector of the peace

–even if that person’s last name is Liang–

that is an assault on all of us,

and on all of our hopes for equality
and fairness under the law

For all these reasons I support
the Black Lives Matter movement

Part of that support means
speaking up when I see people

in my own community
–or even my own family–

say or do things that
diminish the humanity

of Black Americans in this country

I’m telling you this out of love, because
I don’t want this issue to divide us

I’m asking you to try and empathize
with the anger and grief of the fathers,

mothers, and children who have lost
their loved ones to police violence

To empathize with my anger and grief

To support me if I choose
to be vocal and to protest

To share this letter with your friends and
to encourage them to be empathetic, too

As your child, I am proud
and eternally grateful

that you took the long,
hard journey to this country,

that you've lived decades in a place
that hasn’t always been kind to you

You’ve never wished your
struggles upon me

Instead, you’ve suffered through
a prejudiced America,

to bring me closer to
the American Dream

But I hope you can consider this:

The American Dream cannot
exist only for your children

We’re all in this together
and we cannot be safe

until all of our friends, loved
ones, and neighbors are safe

The American Dream that we seek

is a place where all Americans can
live without fear of police violence

This is the future that I want –
and one that I hope you want, too

With love and hope,

Your chidren