Please Read

This will be a rather strange post but I hope you will read to the end.

I thought for a while about whether to make this kind of post on this blog, but I realized that I have a platform with a substantial follower count (which may very well dwindle after this), so I want to use what I have.

First things first, there will be no update this week and perhaps next week too.

Before you wonder, I am fine. My loved ones are fine.

But there are people out there whose lives are not, who live in danger every single day, every moment, for being who they are. For simply existing.

If you live in the United States and/or been following the news/social media, then you may realize by now who and what I am talking about, considering the timing of this post.

Yes, I am talking about the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, Nina Pop, Sean Reed, and George Floyd, as well as all the deaths before them and countless other ones that do not get covered by media, not to mention other forms of hate and violence done against Black people that do not get reported.

To my fellow Canadians, I am also talking about the recent death of Regis Korchinski-Paquet and all the others before her. Make no mistake, Canada is just as blood-stained as our southern neighbour in the crimes committed against Black and Indigenous communities (amongst other things). We just cover it up better behind the pretty packaging of “multiculturalism” and other nonsense.

(If you live outside of the U.S./Canada and somehow naively think that your country is free from racism and/or anti-Black racism, think again. Check yourself. Dig deeper.)

You may think it is strange to post about politics in a translation blog.

I agree.

It IS strange to frame this as merely “politics” when people are dying.

Stranger still to think one can create and curate spaces free from “politics”.

If you can, that is a privilege.

Black people do not have the luxury of leaving their identities behind when they go online, not when anti-Black racism is so pervasive, so global. Not when it shows up in every piece of media they consume, in attitudes demonstrated by everyone from celebrities to your everyday people. Not when they are harassed, bullied, get sent hate and death threats the moment they dare to speak and have an opinion in these online spaces. The physical reality they live in is even worse.

So, out of respect and in solidarity with them, I am using my platform, however small it may be, to spread awareness and raise support.

If you are somehow unaware of the recent events, start reading HERE for a summary of what has transpired this week.

Action you can take right now:

1. Sign and share petitions. The list is continuously updated and includes zip codes to use if you live outside of the U.S.
2. If you have the means, please donate. If you can set up recurring donations to the organizations, even better. Every dollar helps! Also look up local grassroots Black-led organizations/businesses and see how you can help, not just today but in the future as well.
   • Do Not Donate to Shaun King!
   • To the Victims (Regis Korchinski-Paquet’s is included here)
   • To the Protesters
3. Text, Call and/or Write to your elected representatives, chiefs of police, police investigation units, etc At. Every. Level (local, state/province, federal), demanding action and justice.
   • If you’re like me and find templates helpful, here are some: re: George Floyd, re: Regis Korchinski-Paquet
4. Other Ways to Help: Black Lives Matter Carrd (continuously updated, also includes resources to support protesters, as well as educational resources)
5. Lastly, beware of misinformation. Here is a thread.

Other Action You Can Do

Remember, it is not just about what you do today. Your actions count today, tomorrow, and in the future. They count in your everyday lives, when you are in private and when you are with family/friends. Anti-Black racism does not end when the current news cycle ends, or when things “go back to normal” on social media. There is no “back to normal” for Black people, because their “normal” is still fearing over their safety every second because of the colour of their skin. Performative activism or allyship serves no one. (I say all of this not just to you but also as a reminder to myself.)

• Beyond the Hashtag: How to Take Anti-Racist Action in Your Life
• 26 Ways to Be in the Struggle Beyond the Streets
• 75 Things White People Can Do for Racial Justice (also applicable to non-black poc!)

To my fellow Asians:

• 6 Ways Asian Americans Can Tackle Anti-Black Racism in Their Families
• 20+ Allyship Actions for Asians to Show Up for the Black Community Right Now

Additional Education Resources

Don’t ask Black people what you can do. It is not their job to educate you. They have been burdened enough. It is up to us to do our own research, to read, listen, learn, and be better. I myself am still working at dismantling the anti-Black racism that I was socialized into, that all of us were socialized into. The journey is always ongoing. I will make mistakes, and so will you. Own up to them, apologize, and do better.

The above lists contain many great educational materials themselves, but here are some more:

• The unconscious bias test
• Anti-racism resources for white people (and all non-Black folks!)
• White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack by Peggy McIntosh (only 7 pages!)
• For Our White Friends Desiring to Be Allies
• Performing Blackness Won’t Fill Our Asian-American Culture Deficit
• Tiny ways black people are dehumanized daily
• Letters for Black Lives “is a set of crowdsourced, multilingual, and culturally-aware resources aimed at creating a space for open and honest conversations about racial justice, police violence, and anti-Blackness in our families and communities.” (available in more than 10 languages!)
• Five Racist Anti-Racism Responses “Good” White Women Give to Viral Posts (aimed at white women but also good reminders to all of us to check ourselves)
• An Anti-Racist Reading List
• Alternatives and Substitutes for Appropriative or Problematic Language (particularly AAVE or Black English)
• We Need to Talk About Digital Blackface in Reaction GIFs

On a similar note, here is another confession:

Late last year, heartsick over the news about the detention camps in Xinjiang, I also once again did not have the stomach to translate. I had meant to also make a post like this to raise awareness, considering its relevance to this novel, which is set in Xinjiang (the Kingdom of Kucha is located in modern-day Xinjiang, China). But I was a coward. There is no point in listing my list of excuses as none of them matters now.

If you are unaware of what was and very likely still happening in Xinjiang, China:

Data leak reveals how China ‘brainwashes’ Uighurs in prison camps (BBC)

‘Absolutely No Mercy’: Secret speeches and leaked government documents reveal how China carried out the internment of as many as a million people. (New York Times)

Watched, judged, detained: Leaked Chinese government records reveal detailed surveillance reports on Uyghur families and Beijing’s justification for mass detentions (CNN, interactive)

FINAL WORDS

If you are reading to here, thank you.

Currently, I have no intention of quitting this translation project. I recognize that this is not a personal blog and I do not plan on converting it into one (though arguably, where does one draw the line). However, I cannot say that this kind of post will be a one-time occasion because as I mentioned, for many of us, we do not have the privilege to separate politics from our lives, online or offline.

I am, after all, a person before I am a translator.

If you want to unfollow/unsubscribe after reading this post, feel free. You do not owe me anything and neither do I. That said, before you do so, ask yourself why.

Ask yourself why this post makes you uncomfortable (if it does), because it is meant to be.

If you feel that none of this affects you, check your privilege. If you say you are not racist, prove it.

Injustice is happening. Has always been present. Lives and human rights are at stake.

Ask yourself what you want to do about it, because this is no time to be comfortable.