The Samuel E. Kelly Ethnic Cultural Center is dedicated to the well-being of all of our students. We are committed to your success and safety. Below you will find statements put out by us and other UW centers around campus about the Black Lives Matter movement and Stop AAPI Hate.
Hate Has No Home Here: Black Lives Matter
Samuel E. Kelly Ethnic Cultural Center Statement of Solidarity
To Our Black Community,
We are troubled and outraged by the recent lives that have been taken from our community. It is a reminder that even during a worldwide pandemic, when unity is imperative in fighting a common threat, our communities are still vulnerable and continue to be targeted by those who seek to exert power and privilege with the goal of spreading hate and oppression.
We will not forget you George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and Tony McDade. These are just the recent names of a list that unfortunately just keeps growing. And to our Black Community at the University of Washington and the Kelly ECC, we know you are experiencing emotions that are bigger and more intense than usual. Our staff wants you to know that we stand in solidarity with you. We see you, we hear you, and we are committed to you and your well being. If you need us, we are here for you, we offer a shoulder to lean on, an ear to listen, a hand to lift you up and the space to rest and heal.
To other allies, in the face of this hate, we must work together to fight for members of our Black community, to resist, expose and disrupt systematic power structures that threaten to carry out discrimination and violence against Black people. Moreover, we need to put in the work to create a more inclusive environment within our spaces and communities; no one is exempt. We all need to do our part!
Black Lives Matter, today and always!
Your Kelly ECC Family
Black Lives Matter Resource Document
We have curated this extensive list of resources of all varieties, however we know that this list isn’t complete of all of the amazing information that is out there. We will keep the list updated as we find more.
Email Templates for Students
For our students looking for how to word emails to UW professors, leadership, and departments, you may use these provided email templates as a reference. Resources include addressing concerns to urge tangible actions for your departments, requests for extensions, and more.
Kelly ECC Instagram Post Resources
For more information, you may follow our Kelly ECC Instagram where we post current updates and additional resources for our Black students and committed allies.
Hate Has No Home Here: Stop AAPI Hate
Combined Statement from the UW Centers:
Content/Trigger Warning: White supremacy, anti-Asian violence, xenophobia
Dear UW Community,
The Kelly Ethnic Cultural Center at UW Seattle, the Center for Equity and Inclusion at UW Tacoma, and the Diversity Center at UW Bothell recognizes and condemns the violence towards Asians/Asian Americans that have been occurring, specifically in Oakland, CA and the greater Bay Area, New York City, and around the US. The videos are incredibly disturbing and inhumane, our hearts go to the victims and families that have been suffering from these attacks.
“Between March and December 2020, the coalition Stop AAPI Hate documented over 2,800 anti-Asian hate incidents nationwide.” As anti-Asian hate crimes rise, it is important to recognize how white supremacy plays a part in all this. We acknowledge that it creates this idea that there is a scarcity of space for liberation, pits communities of color against each other, and reinforces specific narratives of those communities.
The violence and xenophobia around Anti-Asian sentiments have been around for decades. The 1982 death of Vincent Chin in Detroit is one example of how Asian hate crimes go unnoticed over time. It was because of the voices on social media that the increased Asian attacks have come to light.
In addition to the dozens of attacks targeting Asian elders, Asian Americans were being wrongfully blamed for the COVID-19 pandemic and this past year hate crimes among Asian communities were increasing. These reports also went unnoticed. Our centers exist to support ALL historically marginalized communities and to promote racial and social equity. We encourage everyone to engage in conversation about these current events in the Asian community, explore our internal bias among different races, give compassion that we are all learning together, and look at ways to advocate for our allied communities. We must battle against the sociocultural constructs that Asians are non-confrontational, and push against the systemic phrase, ‘Model Minority’.
Click to view the new and updated data on anti-Asian hate incidents from Stop AAPI Hate:
In turn, it is just as important for the Asian, Pacific Islander, Desi American communities to hold themselves accountable in fighting racial injustice, especially the internalized discrimination that we see among other races. All of us have our own work to do and we encourage you all to make sure that Anti-Asian xenophobia is part of those building blocks.
With all of this in mind, listed below is the contact info for each of the centers:
UW Seattle Ethnic and Cultural Center (ECC): ECC@uw.edu
UW Tacoma Center for Equity and Inclusion (CEI): UWTCEI@uw.edu
UWT Center for Equity and Inclusion
UW Bothell Student Diversity Center (DC): UWBDIV@uw.edu
Each of the centers are here for you in the ways we’re able to be. Take care of yourselves and each other as we continue to move through the times we exist in for a better more just and equitable future.
In solidarity,
The UW Tri-campus Solidarity and Equity Network
- UW Samuel E. Kelly Ethnic Cultural Center (ECC)
- UW Tacoma Center for Equity and Inclusion (CEI)
- UW Bothell Student Diversity Center (DC)
