Oh, the times in which we live! We are all being affected in some way by COVID-19, unfortunately not always in good ways. Here we are as the month of May begins, and we still can’t make heads or tails of what’s next. We do know that when the United States faces a pandemic, marginalized people face extermination. When we should be celebrating Asian Pacific American Heritage this month, here we are proclaiming the right for Asian Pacific Americans to safely exist. If you’re not aware, since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, people have linked the suspected site of origin (Wuhan, China) with all East Asians, blaming them for the spread of the disease. Regardless of their actual heritage, citizenship, length of time in this country or lack of contact with the virus, East Asians have been attacked physically, emotionally and verbally. Non East Asians have been unable to disassociate the people from the disease.

I’ve decided to use my blog this month to work toward being an ally to Asian Americans by actively promoting their work. Watch for videos of non Asian people in children’s literature reading selections written by their favorite South or East Asian authors. There may even be interviews and essays. I am still looking for non Asians who work in children’s literature to record videos, so please contact me if you’re interested.

Did you know that you don’t have to be Asian American to read books by or about Asian Americans?

I hope you’ll be able to follow along all month to realize the richness that Asian Pacific Americans bring to youth literature. I hope you’ll purchase, share and promote these authors. And, I hope you find the courage to be anti-racist.