May 2012

Dear The Ohio State University Community,

We the undersigned issue this public statement to strongly condemn the recent hate crimes and speech on and near the OSU campus.  As members and allies of the Asian and Asian/Pacific Islander American community, we firmly believe the use of racial epithets and deployment of racist stereotypes to characterize a community are acts of intimidation and violence.  We stand in solidarity with those committed to racial and social justice and inclusion at the University.

As part of our efforts to cultivate an inclusive campus that allows Asian international and Asian American members of the OSU community to feel welcome and at home at the University, we propose the following concrete steps:

> ·      Empower Asian/Asian American students to advocate on behalf of themselves and their friends when witnessing a microaggression, hate speech, or hate crime against Asian/Asian Americans and other marginalized groups;

> ·      Foster a broader dialogue connecting these incidents of racial violence with other hate crimes that occurred earlier this Spring on campus; and

> ·  Further dialogue concerning racism that impacts the Asian/Asian American community by working collaboratively across organizations, departments and programs at the University.

As an institution of higher learning invested in expanding its presence globally and attracting students from diverse backgrounds, The Ohio State University must foster mutual understanding, respect, and inclusion for members of our campus regardless of nationality, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, and other categories of difference.  We believe the University must lead by example through promoting and cultivating a sustained conversation across institutions, departments and organizations operating on campus.

Please feel free to circulate this statement.  If you would like to sign this statement, please contact Kimberly McKee, PhD Candidate, Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies at mckee.517@osu.edu.

Sincerely,

East Asian Studies Center
Institute for Korean Studies
Jian Chen, Assistant Professor, Department of English
Francisco-Xavier Gómez-Bellengé, Associate to the Dean, Fisher College of Business
Lynn Itagaki, Assistant Professor, Departments of English and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Pranav Jani, Associate Professor, Department of English
Mitch Lerner, Director of the Institute for Korean Studies and Associate Professor, Department of History
Joe Ponce, Associate Professor, Department of English
Patricia Sieber, Director of the East Asian Studies Center and Associate Professor, Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures
Mytheli Sreenivas, Associate Professor, Departments of History and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Maurice Stevens, Associate Professor, Department of Comparative Studies
Binaya Subedi, Associate Professor, Department of Education
Judy Wu, Associate Professor, Departments of History and Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Kashif Khan, Intercultural Specialist for Asian American Student Initiatives, Multicultural Center
Rebecca Nelson, Student Life
Annabelle Estera, MA student, Higher Education and Student Affairs
Denise Fuller, PhD Student, Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Kimberly McKee, PhD Candidate, Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Brena Tai, PhD Student, Department of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies
Adrienne Winans, PhD Student, Department of History
Jaysen Arzadon, Undergraduate, 2014
Franchesca Brown, Undergraduate, 2015
Joseph Butso, Undergraduate, 2016
Merissa Chiu, Undergraduate, 2015
Wing (Katie) Chow, Undergraduate, 2013
Andrea Chu, Undergraduate, 2013
Yuri Doolan, Undergraduate, 2012
John Kim, Undergraduate, 2014
Soohyun Kim, Undergraduate, 2013
Meera Kothari, Undergraduate 2013
Vigor Lam, Undergraduate, 2012
Genevieve Lee, Undergraduate, 2015
Juwon Lee, Undergraduate 2012
Steven Lim, Undergraduate, 2012
Stephen Meng, Undergraduate 2015
Andrew Philip, Undergraduate, 2014
Rebecca Ratnasingham, Undergraduate 2012
Spurthi Reddy, Undergraduate, 2014
Mutian Rui, Undergraduate, 2014
Deepa Singh, Undergraduate, 2014
David Tan, Undergraduate, 2011
Hall Wang, Undergraduate, 2015
Shirley Wu, Undergraduate, 2015
Natalie Yoon, Undergraduate, 2013
David Young, Undergraduate, 2014
Justin Yu, Undergraduate, 2013
Asian American Association
Asian American InterVarsity Christian Fellowship
Hindi Club
InterVarsity Christian Fellowship Undergraduate Chapter
Taiwanese American Student Association
United Students Against Sweatshops