Attacks remind us of Fannie Lou Hamer’s saying: “Nobody’s free until everybody’s free.”
(WASHINGTON, March 1, 2021) – Daniel J. Cardinali, president and CEO of Independent Sector, issues the following statement:
“Independent Sector – which values racial equity and a healthy civil society for all – vehemently condemns the wave of anti-Asian violence surfacing in the U.S. as COVID-19 continues.
We must never tolerate any case of hate or racism against people. When it’s hate and violence aimed at elderly Asian Americans – including people walking on the sidewalk and then being shoved to the ground – it’s particularly alarming.
Stop AAPI Hate, a nonprofit coalition, has recorded 2,800 cases nationwide of anti-Asian hate from March to December 2020 – a period in which incendiary phrases such as ‘China virus’ and ‘Kung flu’ started to surface.
Just as Independent Sector stands against anti-Black hate and systemic racism, we also oppose intolerance and violence against all communities of color. We all have a right to safety and to thrive and live peacefully in our communities.
We’re encouraged people and nonprofit leaders nationwide are raising their voices to say we must fight racism and that community solutions exist. We’re encouraged the U.S. Department of Justice is investigating these anti-Asian attacks.
In many communities, Black and Asian residents are working together with allies in response to these attacks in new and existing coalitions to stop violence, hate, and racism. We’re encouraged that a Chicago nonprofit serving the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities is providing anti-harassment training.
As we face our nation’s racial reckoning, it’s worth saying again: We all belong in the United States. All of us contribute to our collective strength.”
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Independent Sector is the only national membership organization that brings together a diverse community of changemakers at nonprofits, foundations, and corporate giving programs working to ensure all people in the United States thrive.
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