During the 04/21/2021 Common Council meeting, 12 members of the public made public comments in support of Resolution #6-R-21 the Resolution Condemning Xenophobia, Racism, and Violence Against The Asian Pacific Islander Desiamerican (APIDA) Community.
As a note, when I work on a meeting recap, I type along to the meeting then usually go back over my notes, clean them up so that they read decently, and turn everything into a consistent third person narrative. However, as I started doing that, I felt that these comments read better as first person statements. These are not word for word transcriptions and therefore don’t have quotation marks around them, but they do hew very closely to what was said and do accurately represent the speakers’ statements.
Gary Crevier (the President of Esther (https://esther-foxvalley.org/)). Over the past year we have seen a 150% increase in the attacks nationally against the Asian community and its impact on our own in the Fox Valley is being felt. It is the fear that they have that we don’t fully comprehend, and I am speaking from conversations I’ve had with members of this community. There is fear for some because of the language barrier resulting in unreported cases such as various kinds of harassment, and I’ve been told by this Asian community that rocks or bricks have been thrown through windows of one of their businesses, another building defaced with paint, the trashing of washrooms in a business, a note posted on one of their homes telling them to go back to where they came from. At times some of their elderly fear to leave their homes. This resolution would be a proactive gesture with the hope of alleviating some of that fear, letting them know that we as a city will not tolerate this kind of anti-Asian racism. It would be our attempt to avoid more tragic occurrences here in Appleton. This resolution would be another ongoing wholesome, relationship-building effort with our Asian community, and, yes, there are other ethnic groups being victimized by racism as well. But this specific resolution speaks to a specific concern of a specific community in our midst, based on specific unsettling truths. We will be one of many cities and counties already drawing the attention of our state leaders in the growing need and concern. So I trust that we will all be humble enough to listen with ears of compassion and accept this resolution in support of our beloved Asian community.
Tammy McLaughlin: Thank you, good evening. I am the director of World Relief Fox Valley, the refugee resettlement agency here in Appleton. We welcome refugees who arrive through the US refugee admissions program and help them make this community be their home. It’s a great honor to work with refugees who are so resilient and hopeful when they arrive, but it is also a great responsibility. This past year we’ve all been made more aware of the deep seated racial and inequity issues our country and our community faces. These are not new issues but were unveiled for many of us to see and recognize like we hadn’t before. Particularly challenging for me as a member of the dominant, or white, culture is admitting that my perspective is greatly influenced by a privilege that I often hadn’t and in some situations still don’t recognize. “And yet as a director of World Relief, I am welcoming people of different cultures into a community where equality still does not exist.” This is the reason I support this resolution. “This resolution is not a solution as we still have so much work to do, but a recognition of the work that must continue–work that will take our whole community from the top roots–you the Common Council–to the grassroots and everyone in between.” It’s hard work and often immeasurable so difficult to know when progress is made, but it is right and worthy as our Asian American community friends have given so much to this Appleton community, and they deserve the same in return. Their contribution of culture, leadership, businesses, and restaurants have made Appleton a better place. Now let’s work together to make this a better place for them. Please support this resolution.
Kou Vang: The question is why do we need this resolution? Why is it important? Let me take you back to what our experience is as Asian Americans–the hate that we’ve received–and this is based on my experience as well as the experience of all of us here in this room. To be hated because of the color of your skin, or your height. You can’t change these two factors. To be disliked because of the color of your hair, you can always dye it, or if you’re a little bit overweight, you can always lose weight. These are things that you can change. But to be hated because of the color of your skin strikes at the heart of what we are as human beings. I can always say that everyone here in this room has had this experience. Way back in the 80s when our uncles, our parents, our grandparents took us here, they went through this experience of hate. Wherever they go because they’re on public assistance they were discriminated against–not only discriminated but hated and spat upon. Recent events have brought them back those vivid memories where they are afraid to go out. I myself am not afraid because I can speak English fairly well, but this resolution is important for those that cannot protect themselves. You as leaders were elected by the people within your district and as my uncle told me, ‘Son, if you’re a leader, whatever that you do, as long as you do it for the people, then there’s no wrong doing.’ If you do it for the best interests of the people then there’s no wrongdoing. Define people–that’s everybody underneath the umbrella. That’s your responsibility. If your district tells you what to do, you must do it. But you also have a career ahead of you. If you’re going to stay local that’s okay, but if you intend to go to the state level or the national level, at some point you’re gonna have to reach out to not just the people who look like you but people who also are different from you. That includes all races, creeds, sexual orientation, and every person that’s in this room. So as leaders, your words carry a lot of weight. Your action also carries a lot of weight. In supporting this resolution, you are telling not just this group of people that they’re welcome but that they are part of the community, and by doing that you will also welcome all sorts of people–black, white, red, green, whatnot. We all are the same. So I would recommend that each one of you would elect leaders that support this resolution. Thank you.
Ger Vang (His family came to America in 1979. He grew up in Green Bay and moved to Appleton in 1995. His wife and he have two daughters and two sons. Both work at AASD. His wife is a teacher and he is a cultural support specialist.): Thank you Mayor Woodford and City Council members for giving this opportunity to share personal experiences and voice concerns related to the ongoing racial injustice happening to individual groups across our nation, specifically the Asian American community–affecting our community. It’s a constant reminder that not all of us have the same privilege. As an Appletonian and a Hmong American I always consider Appleton my home, my heart, and my place of peace and tranquility to raise a family. I know I found a home. When my parents brought me here we lost everything, but we survived and where we live–this is our home. This is forever our home. However, that peaceful mindset was shattered, as my wife and I were walking on North Meade Street toward Fox Valley Lutheran High School. It was a beautiful Saturday afternoon in October 2020. Right near the intersection of Edgewood and North Meade. A pickup truck came out from nowhere, cut in front of us, had two huge American flags flying, shouting at us, pointing fingers at us. This gentleman in the car shouting, yelling ‘Get out of here. Go home.’ My wife was terrified, and I remained calm to keep my wife calm. I don’t want to create an issue. I don’t want to create a chaotic situation so I say, ‘Okay, this person doesn’t know what he is doing.’ I mind my own business and walk home. When we got home I was shaken. We could have been run over by this truck. We were so close, I could feel the wind right in front of us. I wasn’t thinking much about it. I just say, ‘This is Appleton. How can this be? How can this happen?’ But the recent events across our nation are really shaking me and flash me back to that moment. It is sad. It is unwelcoming. It is heartbreaking that someone shouts at you, ‘Go home.’ Where is home? Appleton–a place where I said, ‘I’ll raise my family.’ This is my community. I’m not just part of the community; I am the community. So I would like to ask all of you to support this important resolution to make Appleton continue to be the safe and welcoming–the most welcoming place and the most peaceful city in the midwest. Show everyone to live with dignity and respect. Thank you.
Joe Vang: Thank you mayor and alderperson. I’m Joe Vah–my nephew is called Vang but actually it’s a Vah. I’m here just to support all of your decision about the resolution. [There was a part that I just couldn’t understand due to the audio] I’m here to support the resolution and I only say one thing. Mother Theresa said, ‘Any time you smile to a person, it’s an action of love. It’s a good gift that is beautiful.’ I think, tonight, all of you are doing beautiful. You bring everybody toward peace, and I’m here to support that peace.
Za Blonc Vang: To the mayor and the city leaders, thank you. I’m coming here to support the resolution and to protect other people including American people and Asian American people. In 2020-2021 many things happened around the United States and the city about ethnic/racial problems. So we’re here to support this resolution–especially for the Hmong people in this area. As you may know, many years in the past we lived here more than 40 years. We have safety. [I could not understand the next part that he said] But two years now something changed. The situation around the United States changed something–the racial hate crime. And so I would like to request you to support this resolution tonight and to [a word I couldn’t understand] our people in this area.
Thong Thor: I’m a long time Appletonian. I grew up in Appleton and graduated from the local high school and then went on to obtain my physician assistant degree from UW Madison and have been back in the Fox Valley serving the community for the past 10 years. I’m currently employed at Encircle Health as a medical provider. As well as the Covid clinic on the front lines. [He briefly encouraged people to get vaccinated and said that he had seen a few people contract Covid-19 more than once.] I wish to bring to your attention why this resolution must be passed. Just over a week ago, I was talking with my 5th grader. She’s a smart student. She received the Ronald Dunlap Student Success award which awards students for efforts in overcoming barriers achieving academic excellence and embodying the school spirit. She was one out of 70 students out of the entire 15,000 students in AASD. We were talking about how her school was going on a Sunday evening when she shared with me an incident on a playground the Friday prior. Gaga ball is a recess sport similar to Dodgeball. You throw the ball, you hit somebody, they’re out. She threw the ball, she got somebody out–another fellow 5th grader. As he was leaving he announced, ‘Does anyone have a gun? I want to shoot her.’ Another student responded, ‘My dad does.’ To which the boy requests, ‘Can you bring it?’ This was just last week. That was what she overheard. There was a supervisor present but on the opposite side. I was horrified by what I heard. Mass shootings, anti-Asian incidents recently, and here he talked about bringing a gun, having intent. I just didn’t know if it was going to be next week or the next day. Will I be seeing a mass shooting on TV tomorrow? So I did what any parent would do, I called the police. 9PM on a Sunday night. My daughter was able to spell their last name and knew that one of the students’ parents was an associate principal at the local school. I believe this led to the police in swiftly identifying the parents as well as the students and within two hours they called me back and provided an update. The police officer had spoken to the parents as well as to the students who had confirmed what indeed had happened had happened. I trust that the police would do their due diligence in keeping our community safe. Thank you, Chief Thomas. My question is, what are you as our city leaders going to do to keep our community safe? This is proof that what we are seeing at the national level is in our community. Are you going to wait for the next tragedy to say we could have/should have. Or are you going to be proactive? It is shameful that it comes down to the community members to make these pleas just to make us feel safe, when we have been part of the community for so long–that our Asian doctors, teachers, farmers, janitors, business owners, police officers, firefighters and the many sectors that make up the ongoing socio-economic development in the Appleton and surrounding areas. In my line of work we strongly believe that prevention is the best medicine. Lastly, please allow me to remind each of you as I witnessed yesterday you swore to support the Constitution of the United States as well as the Constitution of the State of Wisconsin. The first article in the State’s constitution reads in part, “All people are born equally, free and independent and have certain inherent rights. Among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Thank you.
Christina Thor: A little bit of info about myself. I was raised in Appleton all my life until I graduated with my bachelors degree in journalism and PR at UW Oshkosh. I have family here and Appleton is the place I call my home. I am here almost every weekend with my family. I now live in Green Bay for work. Every line in this resolution before you is a lived experience that you cannot refute. This includes real narratives of community members. This includes documentation of hurtful words that have been said to our community. This includes irrefutable statistics of violence in our current period right now, sad to say. Like my brother Thong who just asked you, ‘Why do we need to make these pleas before you to feel protected in our city?’ Anti-Asian hate crime is already a nationally recognized issue and we should not stand divided at the local government level. For some of you it was your first time swearing in yesterday. And for others, you got reelected. This may be one of the most important pieces that you vote on because we make a large part of what makes Appleton. History has painted us as refugees and immigrants, and today we stand tall as professionals, teachers, doctors, college students, and entrepreneurs who add value to the city. This resolution will show that this city will protect those who need it most. Most importantly, our youth and elders. As you may already know, elders in our culture are very revered and respected. You can see right behind me, we asked our elders to sit first because of the limited chairs and have the rest of us stand. When the news came out about elders across the nation being beaten, which was fueled by anti-asian hate, we were devastated as a whole entire community nationally. Like the stories you heard tonight, most of us are forced to go into survival mode once we step outside of our homes. The time is now for government to take urgent steps to prevent racist and xenophobic violence and discrimination linked to the pandemic while prosecuting racial attacks against asians and people of asian descent. and every other color. I urge you all to act now to strengthen the immunity of our society against hatred. We understand that passing this resolution does not make it a law, but this is a tangible and intentional effort in our history that shows that our elected leaders support all people in Appleton and this city accepts us as dignified constituents. So I ask you all tonight what harm does it do to you if you vote on a resolution like this because this is not about you. This is not about me. This is about a community that does not feel safe in this city, your city, our city. This community is calling you to step up. We need leaders at the front lines who will lead with boldness and courage. Let’s not wait for the next horrific incident to take place in Appleton to act. Use your platform and exercise your constitutional duty to protect everyone in the city, starting with your vote to pass this resolution today.
Tina Thor: When I meet a stranger who asks me where I’m from I usually reply ‘Appleton, Wisconsin’, and when that doesn’t appease them, they ask me where I was born and I say, ‘Appleton, Wisconsin’ as well. So they ask me where I was born and I would say “here in Appleton, Wisconsin” and then I joke around with them and say, ‘Well, I didn’t get really far.’ You know, people move away. I have moved away, but I find myself coming back to this city where I was born and raised. I love this city. It’s a nice place to call home and it’s always been a home in my heart. So I came back to raise my children here because I know it’s nice and safe and, being that I was born here, I had a wonderful childhood. I felt safe. I felt the love from the community. I didn’t ever fathom that this could happen to me.
So it was a normal day. I went out to the store with my mom and I went out to get breading for chicken dumpling soup, and so of course the flour has been picked over. So I was just minding my own business looking for flour. As I was doing this a lady came down the aisle. She started yelling, and I was still minding my own business because I was trying to find the best flour to make chicken dumpling for my children and that was my mission. And she kept yelling louder and louder so I had a second look, and she was yelling for me to go back to my own country. She yelled and she said, ‘Do you realize where you are? You need to go back to your own country.’ And I was like, ‘Excuse me?’ And I was so shocked from this incident. It wasn’t mandated to wear a mask at that time but my mom was wearing a mask because she said, ‘What’s the harm in protecting yourself?’ So she’d wear a mask and I was so shocked by this happening. Because in the city I was born and raised in I didn’t think this could ever happen, especially because I know the language very well, and, being born here, I didn’t think it would ever happen to me. So after this incident I got outside and I yelled at my mom, for somebody attacking me because of this racial thing and then I go and return and attack my mom for wanting to protect herself. [At this point she was very emotional and near tears. It was a moving speech.] And since this incident happened, I second guess myself before I go out in the community just to do shopping for my family or pick up stuff for my kids, and I go out there and worry and am in fear. So I would like you guys to all try to find it in your heart to protect those in the community. For me I can speak the language and I can protect myself verbally, but for our–I didn’t want to come up here and speak–but for all those elders and my parents and those who can’t defend themselves, if I don’t come up here and say something, who’s going to defend them? And so I would like you guys to all find it in your heart to pass this resolution.
Jeanne Roberts (President of Women League of Voters In Appleton) I spent all day putting together all these great words and then you hear this, so you don’t need to hear anything from me. The community has spoken for itself. If after hearing that you can vote against this resolution, you need to look at yourself. The League has a 100 year history of non-partisan advocacy at the local, state, and national level. In the June 2020 convention, the League elevated their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion stance to be equal to their nonpartisan stance. Delegates to the convention passed a resolution that states, “We resolve that the League help our elected officials and all Americans recognize these truths to be self-evident that Black, Indigenous, and all People Of Color deserve equal protection under the law and that we demand solutions for the terrible wrongs done so that regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, disability, and gender identity or sexual orientation we may truly become a nation indivisible with liberty and justice for all.” Hatred and violence toward the AAPI community is not new. But as you’ve heard from the local Appleton community over the past year it’s gotten worse. The Pew Research Center noted that 3 in 10 Asian Americans reported having been subjected to racist slurs or jokes since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. A Harvard Review report indicated that anti-Asian hate crimes had more than doubled between 2019 and 2020. You’ve heard the reports about Appleton. Since 1978, May has been designated as AAPI Heritage Month. This resolution with May coming up especially during these times of increased hate and violence toward the AAPI community is the way to start AAPI heritage month in Appleton and show our Asian American community that we are a welcoming community and the hate toward them is not welcome here.
Renee Gralewicz: I’m a Brothertown Indian Nation elder and peace-maker. I’ve been a resident of Appleton for over a decade, and I am a retired US Army major. As an indigenous woman who looks caucasian, I am seldom the recipient of the level of attack and disfavor that we see from our brothers and sisters, our aunties and uncles, all of our relatives here that they feel on a daily basis. I ask you as elected leaders to do this in a native way. In the indigenous community we approach problems from a good place, with a good heart, so we ask that you look in your good heart and say “what is good for our community?” I know we have hate laws on the bill; that doesn’t stop the hate. And a lot of people in our community don’t see and we don’t feel these things that my relatives, my cousins here, have testified to. That doesn’t mean that doesn’t exist. It’s real for them. When we see it on the national news it emboldens my neighbors to act out themselves. I have a neighbor who I’ve known every day since I’ve lived in Appleton. He started ranting about the ‘China-frickin-virus’. And I had to tell him that’s not acceptable language for me. I’ll talk to you later, and I had to walk away. This is our community. We are a good people. We have good hearts, and by you passing this resolution, you say we’re not only just protecting our AAPI community, we’re protecting all of our communities. Because it’s not just AAPI who need help. It’s the people who are angry and ugly and ferocious in their hatred. They need help too. And by passing this resolution, you’re helping them look in the mirror and say, ‘Oh, maybe my behavior is not acceptable.’ So I encourage you to pass this resolution. Stand up for our community–all of us.
Amanda Stuck (Appletons former State Assembly representatives): Anything I have to say doesn’t compare to the stories you heard tonight and as an ex-elected official, I would really encourage you to listen to the people. These are the people you represent. They are asking you to please support this. I am asking you to please support this. And, certainly, history will never look–it will always look fondly on you for voting against racism and violence. So don’t be the one that history looks back on unfondly because you didn’t support this. Thank you.
View full meeting details and video here: https://cityofappleton.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=853491&GUID=7683F31F-266E-4E28-ACA6-6B593992635A&Options=info|&Search=
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