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Pritzker to Asian-Americans: “Illinois is your home”

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Less than a week after a deadly attack on Asian Americans in Atlanta, Gov. J.B. Pritzker and members of the General Assembly’s Asian American Caucus spoke out against the murders and against discrimination generally toward the Asian American community.

“I do not pretend to know the pain of this moment, for those who look at the Atlanta victims and see their own mothers, daughters and sisters, or themselves,” Pritzker said at a news conference Monday in the Chinatown neighborhood in Chicago.

“But I want the (Asian American Pacific Islander) community in Illinois to know that I see you, and I see the fear and anxiety that these events have forced into your lives and the lives of your loved ones, and I want you to know that Illinois is your home.

“You are our friends and our neighbors and our family members, and I will do everything in my power as governor to protect you and to welcome you.”

Pritzker was accompanied by members of the Asian American Caucus, including Democratic Reps. Theresa Mah of Chicago, Janet Yang Rohr of Naperville, Denyse Wang Stoneback of Skokie and Sen. Ram Villivalam, a Democrat from Chicago.

* Related…

* Rep. Theresa Mah On Addressing Anti-Asian Hate At The State And Federal Levels: “Asian Americans had been largely invisible,” said State Rep. Theresa Mah. “It wasn’t until last week’s horrific events that the issue was brought into the spotlight.”

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 10:04 am

Comments

And yet the woke left seeks to deny Asian Americans access to our country’s top high schools and universities by imposing racial quotas which are not based on merit. This is true discrimination.

Comment by striketoo Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 10:27 am
To the post,

What’s so disconcerting, for me, is this idea that two things that seem by every indicator are symbiotic are treated so differently as to signal to those with racist thoughts, “your thoughts and words are not this, and political correctness is run amuck”

We have people *still* using and thinking that slander towards a race when identifying the virus is “ok”. We are told “ya know saying (redacted) or (redacted) is fine, don’t tell me my free speech needs to be stifled”

So that’s part one. Trying to normalize (frankly, the continued normalization of racist thoughts) the hate as not part of the violence, and then the violence in of itself.

I’ve yet to hear a reasonable person say “those who do hate crimes do not use hate speech”…

… yet, those who refuse to see escalation are saying *exactly* that. It’s that bizarre to welcome racist thinkers to your side… as those who are hurt, or worse as what happened in Atlanta, it’s these gymnastics that are used to pacify racist thinkers in a certain party.

You can’t advocate for “racist thinking free speech” and say “my words aren’t hurting anyone”.

That’s not the case.

When people tell you who they are, believe them.

They are also telling others that the symbiotic relationship is one they will ignore, and that’s where we see violence and hate meeting.

There are only TWO sides. Choosing not to see the racism or welcoming free hate speech is not going to help, that’s an understatement.

My thanks to the Governor.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 10:29 am
===seeks to deny Asian Americans access to our country’s top high schools and universities===

Your beef is with.., those high schools and universities.

Oh.

So because of your beef, Asian-Americans should be targeted for hate crimes or death?

That’s an odd take.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 10:31 am
and after today’s revelation, we’re going to have to go a whole other way, yet again, supporting people who are in a particular group. as people start up the suspicion because of the Boulder shooter.

Comment by Amalia Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 10:32 am
==and after today’s revelation…==
Sadly true. I mean, it’s almost like there is a subset of the population that looks to distort all current events through the lens of race.

I don’t want to steer the topic away from AAPI discrimination (it affects my loved ones directly), but Amalia’s right about one thing - people sure love a scapegoat that “doesn’t look like us.”

Comment by Dysfunction Junction Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 11:03 am
“And yet the woke left”

You realize we’re talking about human beings being murdered don’t you? And this is what you lead with, Kass level talking points?

Comment by Larry Bowa Jr. Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 11:32 am
@striketoo

You sound like someone I would avoid.

Comment by Dotnonymous Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 11:57 am
== And yet the woke left seeks to deny Asian Americans access to our country’s top high schools and universities by imposing racial quotas which are not based on merit. This is true discrimination.==
What are you talking about? Racial quotas haven’t been allowed since 1978, when the Supreme Court ruled in Regents of the University of California v. Bakke.

Comment by 17% Solution Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 12:43 pm
Never ending election campaigning and pandering goes on.

Comment by Unconventionalwisdom Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 1:05 pm
===pandering===

The eight dead in Atlanta see you.

“When someone tells you who they are… “

I thank you.

Comment by Oswego Willy Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 1:08 pm
The killings in Atlanta are only one such event in which Asian Americans (writ large) have been targeted for hate crimes this year.

Hate crimes against Asian Americans have increased 150% (that’s 150 percent), since Trump’s naming the COVID-19 pandemic as an Asian thing.

Words matter. It is not pandering to acknowledge that we as a Nation have not been paying attention to the harm our words cause, and the license hate speech gives to those already hateful (regardless of whom they would target).

Thank you, Governor. Now, let’s begin work of it. [Let’s as in, “let us…”).

Comment by H-W Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 3:43 pm
= striketoo - Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 10:27 am:

And yet the woke left seeks to deny Asian Americans access to our country’s top high schools and universities by imposing racial quotas which are not based on merit. This is true discrimination.=

While I agree with your overall sentiment I do not see how it relates to this issue in any direct, coherent manner.

Comment by Unconventionalwisdom Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 4:47 pm
Mrs. Blue recollects to the late 70’s in her days on the Northwestern campus. Hardly a day went by when she wasn’t referred to as a ‘Gook’ or Jap. Times are a changing for sure.

Comment by Blue Dog Tuesday, Mar 23, 21 @ 5:40 pm