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For centuries, since Asians first arrived in the United States, the color yellow has been used against them. It was weaponised as a derogatory slur and exploited to vilify Asian Americans, most notably through the notion of the \u201cYellow Peril.\u201d In recent decades, however, Asian Americans have sought to reclaim the term \u201cyellow\u201d and turn it on its head through the political practice of reappropriation, challenging and dismantling hate speech in the process.<\/p>\n
As part of this effort, an imaginative campaign called \u201cThe Yellow Whistle\u201d was launched as a self-protection programme by Agnes Hsu-Tang and Oscar Tang, together with four others, in 2021, in response to the anti-Asian hate and violence fueled by the pandemic.<\/p>\n
How it works: The whistle is designed to wrap around the wrist for easy access, giving people - particularly older adults - a simple way to sound a loud alarm and call for help when faced with an attack or racist and ethnically motivated harassment. The words \u201cWe Belong\u201d are engraved on the whistle, serving as a slogan and symbol that confronts the \u201chistorical tyranny\u201d experienced by their ancestors on American soil. Through this reappropriation, the campaign seeks to turn a symbol historically used to stigmatise Asians into one of empowerment and resistance.<\/p>\n
More than 350,000 free whistles had been distributed at hundreds of locations by September 2021, including some of the 520 Kampgrounds of America (KOA) locations across North America. Non-Asians were also encouraged to take a yellow whistle as a sign of solidarity with Asian Americans.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are afraid to go outside, and that is an infringement on their right to live freely,\u201d founder Agnes Hsu-Tang said, stressing the need to ensure physical protection in the face of violence that was increasingly making people afraid to go out.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hope that using this simple device can give people a little more confidence to go out freely and without fear,\u201d Tang continued, describing the campaign as a practical \u201ccall to action.\u201d \u201cYellow has a particular significance for Asians,\u201d she emphasised.<\/p>\n
In this way, reappropriation, through this targeted campaign, has given Asian Americans a way to know that they have allies wherever they go. The Yellow Whistle is one of many safety initiatives \u2014 including daily patrols, self-defence programmes, and the distribution of pepper spray and personal keychain alarms \u2014 launched by Asian American communities in response to the rise in anti-Asian hate during the pandemic and the prolonged lockdowns.<\/p>\n
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#HateCrimes | Unfortunately, hate crimes were also reported.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n The programmes were revived over the course of the past year (2022), as Asians and Asian Americans experienced a resurgence and rise in verbal attacks related to #Covid and its subvariants. In 16 of the largest U.S. cities, hate crimes targeting Asians increased by 145% in 2020, according to an analysis by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino.<\/p>\n #StopAAPIHate has recorded more than 10,000 reported hate incidents between March 2020 and the present. Nearly half included at least one hateful statement containing anti-Chinese and\/or anti-immigrant rhetoric.<\/p>\n The bottom line: The message behind The Yellow Whistle is \u201csomething that we should subscribe to,\u201d Tang said, adding that \u201cthe campaign has definitely become a rallying cry for Asians,\u201d with support from non-Asian communities as well. At its core, the campaign is about recognising that we are standing up, first and foremost, for our fundamental rights to self-determination and self-agency.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n