I want to do my best to keep this brief. For the first time this week, COVID-19 was the last thing on my mind. This week’s incident resulting in the death of George Floyd is devastating. And having to already deal with a pandemic and feeling like we are rolling backwards from the progress we’ve made on racism in this country is exhausting for everyone. Every time one of these deaths occurs, I find myself struggling with words. I know even after this post gets published, I’m going to go back and forth on it wishing I had said something differently or more.

There are many ways for Asian Americans to stand with African Americans as allies. I’m sure all of you are seeing these resources within your social media accounts right now. I urge you to take the time and read through each one. This is important and doesn’t warrant you skipping by it. Because I have this platform, it doesn’t feel right to not address it. It’s not business as usual; nothing about 2020 is normal. To not acknowledge what is going on in this country as a problem would signal that it doesn’t impact me.

I cannot speak for everyone and I recognize that not everyone is as comfortable with social media as I am. There are two points I want to say here: if you yourself are not a social media regular and don’t feel comfortable posting anything regarding the matter, that is okay. Know that there are other ways to become involved and informed and you can do this behind the scenes. Secondly, sharing related posts on social media and flooding your stories doesn’t do any good if you yourself are not taking action. What you are doing is spreading awareness, but take it a step further. Make those shares count for something.