Floor Is Wet

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5283696&forum_id=2).#45916099)

(whats going on ITT)

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5283696&forum_id=2).#50130543)

Ryan Patterson, The Leader-Telegram, Eau Claire, Wis.

Sat, April 3, 2021 at 4:18 PM GMT+7

11 min read

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Asian Americans in Eau Claire share personal stories of racism and fear at "Stop AAPI hate" rally and vigil, highlighting the increase in hate crimes and bias incidents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Apr. 3—EAU CLAIRE — During spring, Kong Pheng Pha would normally enjoy the warmer weather and fresh air on jogs and walks. This year, though, his ability to go outdoors has been severely restricted because Pha, a Hmong American, fears for his safety in public.

"Our everyday lives essentially have been transformed to avoid potential risk," Pha said.

Pha, a UW-Eau Claire assistant professor of critical Hmong studies and women's, gender, and sexuality studies, was one of several Asian Americans who discussed the physical and psychological impacts of the past year, and their historical precedents, during a "Stop AAPI hate" rally and vigil Friday at Owen Park. In front of a socially distanced crowd of about 200 people, many shared personal stories that included racism, seeming invisible and feeling like an outsider.

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Friday's event was organized to support Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, who have been the targets of an increase in hate crimes and bias incidents during the COVID-19 pandemic, most notably at an Atlanta shooting last month that resulted in the deaths of eight people, six of whom were women of Asian descent.

Attendees wore masks as precautions against COVID-19. Masks and hand sanitizer were available, and contact tracing protocols were in place.

Tou Ger Billy Lor, president of the UW-Eau Claire Hmong Student Association, was one of the organizers of Friday's event.

"I am a citizen of the United States, and I am proud to be Asian," Lor said. "I am here today out of anger, out of hope, out of fear, but the biggest reason why we are all here is in solidarity against racism."

Rep. Francesca Hong, D-Madison, the first Asian American in the Wisconsin Legislature, said Friday's event allowed for communal mourning after so much recent pain and suffering.

"This is incredibly powerful: coming together collectively to grieve, so we can each, as individuals, heal," Hong said. "It is not a weakness to feel, to see and to affirm one another's pain."

She stressed the importance of mutual support.

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