An AUSD Board Member submitted this resolution to be part of our April 6th Board agenda. Staff took the sample resolution from California School Boards Association (CSBA) and altered it slightly to fit the needs of AUSD.
Background information from California School Boards Association President Suzanne Kitchens:
"Amidst the difficulties of the past 12 months, it’s not easy for a single day to stand out. More than half-a-million Americans have died from COVID-19 in the last year. Yet, even against that grim backdrop, the death of eight Americans on March 16 will remain etched in our memory. These victims fell not to a dreaded virus but to the persistent disease of racism that afflicts our country. They were killed in cold blood and targeted because of their ethnicity and their gender.
Last month’s murders in Atlanta were only the latest and most tragic example of escalating violence against Asian Americans. Each day brings new reports of Asians Americans being harassed, assaulted and murdered. I would call these crimes senseless, but that would imply there is no reason or explanation, when in fact, the motivation is clear. Americans of Asian descent are being “othered,” targeted and scapegoated because of their race in a way that devastates the Asian American community and undermines the principles of liberty, equality and basic humanity.
The legacy of Asian American discrimination is long and particularly poignant here in California. It stretches back to the 1850s, when Chinese laborers were recruited to work in and around gold mines, and subjected to violence, exorbitant taxation and inhumane conditions. It continued in the late-19th century with the Chinese Exclusion Act and extended into the early-20th century with the colonization of the Philippines and rampant discrimination against Filipino farmworkers in California, including signs that read “No dogs and no Filipinos.” Then, in World War II, the internment of Japanese Americans and confiscation of their property left one of the deepest stains on America’s legacy. Today, this hatred has found the new and repugnant form of violence. It is our responsibility to ensure that students understand the history and impact of discrimination against Americans of Asian descent, as well as the profound contributions Asian Americans have made to this country. Even more than that, we must set an example of acceptance and make it clear that prejudice in our schools will not be tolerated."
Staff thanks the Board for placing this resolution on the agenda and we anticipate the Board’s full support as a way of showing AUSD's support to the large Asian American community in Alameda.