Since the pandemic began, Asian Americans have been facing rising levels of racist verbal and physical attacks.
The Senate recently sent a powerful message of solidarity to the Asian American and Pacific Islander community by approving a bill that makes it easier to investigate hate crimes against Asian Americans. The vote was 94 to 1.
Staff writer Russ Mitchell spoke with more than a dozen Asian adoptees about their unique perspective and what they have to say about racism in America.
In an interview for "LA Times Today," Mitchell and his daughter Skye joined host Lisa McRee to talk about their experience as a family.
When the AAPI attacks began last spring, Mitchell said he felt worried and afraid for his family.
"I know there has been anti-Asian violence in the past, but to see it suddenly explode was very disturbing. It started off in Oakland, where people were being attacked on the street. And, of course, I worry for my family's safety. My wife is ethnically Korean, and my daughter is Korean," he said.
Regarding the Asian adoptees Mitchell spoke to, almost all of them had two white parents, he said.
"Most of them grew up in white cultures where they were one of very few other Asians or people of color in their grade schools. Most of them told me they felt like they were in both worlds or neither world at the same time. One of them said that when they saw the murders in Atlanta, they saw people killed that looked like them, but the killer looked like their parents. So, it created some cognitive dissonance there. And, some are unsure about whether to be fully accepted as part of the Asian community because they come from a white culture even though they have Asian features."
Mitchell's daughter Skye said she identifies with her Korean identity because her mom is Korean.
"I feel like I integrate a lot of my culture in my everyday life, which is not the experience for a lot of other Asian adoptees that I know. So, I understand what they are going through as an Asian adoptee myself, but I would not say I fully experienced all of the things they have gone through."
One of the adoptees Mitchell spoke to believes that international adoptions should be illegal.
"She was the only one who brought it up, but she felt very strongly about it. There has been a dramatic decline in international adoption in places like China and Korea over the years. About ten years ago, there were 12,000 international adoptions in the U.S., and last year there were about 3,000. So, different countries that used to be a little bit more liberal about sending their kids overseas are paying more attention to finding parents at home in their own countries," Mitchell said.
After reading her dad's article, Skye wants people to know that the experiences of Asian adoptees vary and that they should not be targeted for what they look like or how they identify.
"As an Asian adoptee, a lot of people assume that I was dropped off on the street in Korea and that someone took me to America to have a better life. I identify as American, but I am also Korean; I identify with the Korean culture, and that should not be appropriated or targeted in any way either."
Click the arrow above for the interview. Watch "LA Times Today" at 7 and 10 p.m. Monday through Friday on Spectrum News 1 and the app.