Asian American Studies 2 : Yun Liu, A01, Week 10

Sunday, May 31, 2020

Yun Liu, A01, Week 10

In the reading “Conclusion: Academics Awaken Power, Resistance, and Being Woke,” Kieu Linh Caroline and Wei Ming Dariotis reveal that the education system is supposed to liberate people of color is actually designed to oppress them. The authors encourage people of color in academia to unite and build an equitable education structure.

As the authors said, “Power that seeks to support itself over justice inevitably leads to oppression.” Recently, a white police officer knelt on George Floyd’s neck as he lay on the ground following the arrest and caused the death of George Floyd. George Floyd protests spread over 20 cities in the United States. Police in Minneapolis apparently did not use appropriate force on suspects or treat all racial and ethnic minorities equally. The sad news made me think about the causes of police violence. Police violence is common in the US. People assume that African Americans are potentially to be criminals due to the crime rate among them is high. However, we cannot hold this implicit racial bias just because of the color of skin because it constructs a wedge between different racial groups and deepens the conflict. People of color should resist the powers of oppression through extending justice kindly and speaking out bravely rather than using other violence.

The abuse of power for the police does not differ from unequal treatments and discrimination existing in the corrupted academic education system. People of color in academia have fewer opportunities for higher positions and did not receive respect for their contribution to the extra efforts they put on student’s caring. We have awoken to the reality of this corrupted structure and injustice, and we must choose between going back to the life we used to be or taking action to fight against injustice with allies.