Stop AAPI Hate interviews scholar and activist Dr. Sy Stokes

 

Dear Fellow AAPI Friends,

Today marks the last day of Black History Month, a time to honor the long history of Black America, including countless activists whose decades of strength and contributions paved the way for the racial justice movement.  While our stories and struggles are in many ways unique, Black and Asian communities share a rich history of collective resistance.

To learn more about it, Stop AAPI Hate sat down with scholar and activist Dr. Sy Stokes – who is half-Black and half-Chinese – for a discussion about race, identity, and the growing need for cross-racial solidarity to tackle systemic oppression. You can watch the full conversation here. Or keep reading for our favorite parts.  WATCH THE FULL CONVERSATION

Q: In a political landscape where Black and Asian Americans are constantly pitted against each other, how do you navigate situations when you are put in the middle?  A: I get asked this question so much. While it’s a very important topic and I will not dismiss it, I think it purposely deviates from the answer most people expect. Because most people expect me to talk about the LA Riots or the relationship between activists of the past like Yuri Kochiyama and Malcolm X, but I always recenter the conversation to be about the source of this question. The only reason we talk about this division is because it’s fabricated by a white supremacist agenda that’s existed for centuries. It diverts our attention towards fighting each other rather than the system repressing us all. It’s not white people — it’s whiteness as a system and understanding that we live in a political, economic, and social context where whiteness is privileged over everything. It’s extremely difficult to destroy a system that’s been around for more than two centuries. It’s going to take a long time, so it’s much easier, based on proximity, to fight your neighbor than it is to fight an entire system. The lack of patience that we have is both justifiable and understandable. But also, the main reason why we would rather turn on our neighbor is because I could fight my neighbor tomorrow, but it would take us several years to fight any small segment of an entire system. Q: How do we re-center that problem of white supremacy and conversations about Black and Asian solidarity? A: Honestly, I think it all comes down to education. The books that we read, the education that we consume, what we were taught, and what we’re fed throughout our entire lives make it very, very easy to become anti-Black. Anti-blackness is fed to us from birth, and it is up to us whether or not we want to eat. The nation tells us if you don't eat, we're gonna make you starve. We're not going to give you anything in exchange. That's where our communities come in. Our communities are giving us education outside institutional contexts and saying: here's the knowledge that you should be getting fed. In this fight, we all have a common enemy, which is a system itself that is designed to oppress us. Q: How can Asian Americans show up for Black Americans? A: There’s a process of re-education that needs to take place. We have to develop critical consciousness — enough to turn around and say: Wait a minute. Maybe it isn't Black folks who are ruining everything for us and the anti-Blackness I'm being fed; I don't have to eat this up. Maybe the community can provide more assistance for me if I just welcome myself to further education.  For both the Black and Asian communities, take your time to take a step back and understand who this common enemy is. Who is forcing us to feel like this is a zero-sum game? The answer has been the same for centuries. You can now come into our spaces and understand why we keep fighting the way we do.  ⚡ LIGHTNING ROUND ⚡ Q: Who is your biggest role model in racial justice? A: I’ve got to say my dad first. Throughout our lineage, there are so many other people that I can identify, both on my Black and Asian side that have created change in their own ways and their own kind of microcosms of life. The more traditional answer: James Baldwin, Malcolm X, Angela Davis, Edward Said.  Q: What book would you recommend to aspiring activists? A: The Question of Palestine by Edward W. Said and Black Marxism by Cedric Robinson. Q: What is the best advice that you have ever gotten? A: My father always told me there's going to be a lot of things in this world that you have to do but you don't want to do, so you might as well be the best at it. Why not try to put your best effort forward? Effort is something that – no matter what your circumstances are – is the one thing you can control. Q: What is your favorite Chinese comfort food? A: Uncle Chung's in Pinole, California.