Photo: Bryan Geli
It wasn’t easy growing up in a place where I physically looked different than everyone else. I remember getting on the school bus in Ohio and someone said, “Chinese, Japanese, dirty knees, look at these.” There was one kid that kind of defended me but I didn’t know what to say. Racism was not something I had any experience with in the Philippines. I was in third grade and I remember going to my mom to ask her what I should do. She said, “Don’t worry about it, you’ll be fine.”
By fifth grade, I started getting punched. I remember getting hit really badly while walking down the street one day. Looking back on it now, I didn’t realize how much I came to normalize those experiences. I was in Ohio, living in an all-white community and I didn’t feel like I had options. I took all of my feelings, shoved them down and quietly locked them away.
I’ve always loved acting my entire life, and when I started doing plays in high school, something odd began to happen. I was suddenly popular. I was making more friends and falling harder in love with my passion. After high school, I knew I wanted to leave Ohio and I had my heart set on New York City to start my acting career.
Today, I’m proud to say that I am a Filipino American, who loves himself and where he comes from. I have been acting professionally for over two decades and I have my family to thank for all of their support. So when anti-Asian racism began to sky rocket at the start of the pandemic, all I could think about were my parents, who are both nearly 80 years old.
It baffles me that there are people out there who hate so much that they’re ready to kill. The attacks on the AAPI community have deeply affected everyone in my life, and we’re seeing more and more violence every day. I haven’t always been outspoken in the past about what I’ve been through, or my community, but things have gotten so far out of control that I knew I had to start speaking up.
I’m no longer that boy in fifth grade who got bullied and felt he had no options. I know my self worth now, and that’s become my greatest gift. It’s become a gift for me to go up to my parents and tell them that they are worth a lot, and they should be able to take walks without fear.
My parents grew up scared. Many immigrants, like my parents, lived their whole lives feeling scared — scared to raise their family in a new country, scared they were not going to have enough money, scared their kids were going to get hurt, scared for their future. It’s taken a while for me to find my inner voice and to feel worth it, but I’m here today and I will no longer be silent.
It’s time for us to embrace our gifts, to speak out and to demand to feel valued and respected in America. It means a lot to me to have gotten to this place in life where I feel capable of doing my part and supporting my community, so my parents do not have to live in fear anymore. You also have the chance to recognize your worth and step into your power. Recognize that you have options, even when it hasn’t always felt that way. Keep on using your voice to help end these hate crimes that are disproportionately affecting our elderly — our most vulnerable and most loved.
Today, I’m using my gift to say enough is enough. Stop the violence.Stop Asian hate.
And to my dad, I want to say, “Let’s go take a walk. Leave your walking stick at home. We will take this walk together.”
If you’ve been attacked or have witnessed an attack, please contact your local authorities. You can also report your incidenthere.
source: people.com
