How to be an Ally for the Asian & AAPI Community

**This podcast was recorded April 6, 2021**

DRNY's CAP & PABSS program Director and Chair of the Committee on Advancing Racial Equality (C.A.R.E.), Erica Molina, Esq., is joined by Marc Fliedner, Esq., DRNY's PATBI & PAIMI program Director, to discuss what we can do as allies for the Asian and Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.

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[MUSIC PLAYING]

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KATRIN: This is Katrin with
Disability Rights New York.

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Welcome to our podcast,
Empire State of Rights:

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Closed Captioned.

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We are here to bring
you information

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on the most relevant
topics, regarding

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disability rights and advocacy.

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Today, we welcome
Erica Molina, the CAP

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and PABSS program Director here
at Disability Rights New York.

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She's also the chair of
our committee on advancing

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racial equality,
otherwise, known

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as C.A.R.E. As well as DRNY's
PAIR and PAIMI Director, Marc

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Fliedner.

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We're here to talk
about bystander training

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and what we can do as allies
for the Asian and Asian-American

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and Pacific Islander community,
otherwise known as AAPI.

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Erica, Marc, thank you so
much for joining us today.

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ERICA MOLINA: Thanks
for having us.

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MARC FLIEDNER: Glad to be here.

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KATRIN: First, let's
talk about what's

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been happening throughout
the pandemic and COVID-19

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to the AAPI community.

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Erica, let's start with you.

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Can you talk to us
about in general terms,

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how this type of
targeted violence

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is affecting the AAPI community?

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ERICA MOLINA: Sure.

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Well, generally, I'll say
first is that, unfortunately,

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biases and prejudices against
any community, including

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the AAPI community
is nothing new.

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This is certainly something
that the community has

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had to deal with,
and others perhaps

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have only recently heard of,
or have been recently learning

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about.

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I will say that for myself,
I don't identify personally

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as AAPI.

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But certainly, there are
very similar parallels

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between some of the
violence, and some

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of the experiences
those in the community

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are experiencing when
compared to others that we saw

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highlighted similar in the Black
and Brown communities as well.

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Generally, I can say that,
again, this is nothing new.

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But what we know is
that so many prejudices

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come from not knowing.

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They come from ignorance.

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They stem from ignorance
first and foremost.

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So early on during
the COVID pandemic,

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we did start hearing and
seeing some very vocal and very

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obvious statements against
the Asian and Asian-American

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and Pacific Islander
communities.

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Specifically, because
back then, the reports

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were starting from
Asia from China.

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That's where the COVID virus
first was spotted, perhaps

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and it stemmed from there,
and obviously spread globally.

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Some folks took that
opportunity to blame

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the Asian community
for the virus

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itself, which is
obviously incorrect.

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It's not a correct
or very appropriate

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presumption to make.

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Again, it's an uninformed
and uneducated statement

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or beliefs to hold.

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And unfortunately, even though
that's the case, since then

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some folks across our community
here in the United States

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have held on to that bigotry
and to those prejudices.

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So right now we're
seeing this increase,

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a very visible increase
in Asian-American hate

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crimes, violence toward the
Asian-American community,

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including the shooting that
did take place just a couple

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of weeks ago.

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So it is something that
Disability Rights New

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York stands against,
and will be calling out.

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KATRIN: And Marc, as Erica
has been talking about,

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we are seeing violence in major
cities across the country.

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And as she said, most
recently in Atlanta.

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And right now, there's
a call-to-action

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and we're talking
about everyday allies.

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We're seeing people in
different communities coming

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together having rallies,
having marches, speaking

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out, and whether you're
a person on the street,

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or on the subway, or in
a bus, or at the market,

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or we're not in that many public
settings altogether anymore.

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But certainly we are
together as communities.

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What can people do, who
may be witnessing violence,

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whether it's verbal or physical?

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We are the bystanders.

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And Marc, you just attended that
bystander training workshop.

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What are some things
that you learned about?

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What are some things that
we can offer to our audience

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that you may have heard
about that we can do?

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MARC FLIEDNER: Yeah, it's
such a great question,

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and it's such a troubling
time that we're in.

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I'm sitting in New York City,
as we have this conversation.

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I'm a member of the
advisory committee

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to the New York City
mayor's office of prevention

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of hate crimes.

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And we get notices
every time that there

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is a hate crime that's
been reported by the police

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department.

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I cannot tell you the
numbers coming in against

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Asian-Americans.

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It's so disheartening
to see unfold literally

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on your laptop every day.

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So I've really wanted to get
involved in this conversation.

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And I think that one
thing that we can do--

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that's pretty simple.

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We can do it by
social media or we

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can do it on the street is
to simply identify ourselves

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as allies like we do in
other individual groups

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in our community
are being targeted

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for some irrational reason.

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And then I did
attend this training,

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because there is a-- for
a lot of different reasons

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that we could discuss at length.

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Members of the AAPI community
have been historically

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and traditionally a little bit
reluctant to access government

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and to access the police.

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And so that if we see
something happening,

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that looks like it could develop
into a hate crime or even just

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an act of--

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I guess what we refer to as
bullying against somebody

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from the AAPI community.

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To act as bystanders in the
context of interrupting it

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if we can do so safely
and reporting it.

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Because sometimes,
members of the community

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will not be inclined
to report because

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of that historical
context that I referenced.

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And that doesn't mean that
if I witness to an event

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can't report it,
so that we can keep

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track of all these
terrible things happening.

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And try and get to the
root of the problem,

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by getting some good data on
how many people are impacted.

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KATRIN: And Erica,
you and I just

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had a great talk about
what being an ally means.

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I think that if we hear
the word ally a lot,

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whether it is through
social media or in the news

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and how people want to
show that they're an ally.

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And when you shared with me
that being an ally is action

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that really landed
on me in a great way.

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I thought, wow, that is true.

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Ally and being an ally
as action is something

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that we should be looking at.

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What does that look like for the
everyday person to be an ally

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and to be in action in that way?

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ERICA MOLINA: Sure, Katrin.

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And you're absolutely
right, ally

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is something that
needs to be acted upon.

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You can certainly
identify yourself

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as an ally to any marginalized
community or any community that

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is being targeted and in this
particular situation, the AAPI

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community.

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What an ally truly
is someone who

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acts against these prejudicial
ill-informed ignorant

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or bigoted words and
actions and violence.

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To be an ally is definitely
to act in those situations.

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What an ally is not--

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and I'll give you just
a very simple example

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what being an ally is not,
for instance, is simply

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liking a post on
social media that

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calls out Asian-American
violence, for example.

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But then doing
nothing about it, not

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having conversations
about it, not

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educating yourself about it,
not educating others about it

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as necessary.

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It needs to go beyond simply
something performative.

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A performative action that
perhaps highlights you, perhaps

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are highlighting
yourself as an ally.

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But again, that in itself is
simply self-serving action.

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You have to do that
and then more in order

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to truly be an ally
to any community.

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So what that may
look like is, again,

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researching doing lots of
reading and self education

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on where these issues stem
from, why they're happening?

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And to the extent that
someone may already

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be informed about those
instances or that education

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that background.

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And understanding what
actually is happening

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and why it is happening
the way it is.

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The next step would be to
educate, to call people

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out when they are
saying something

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that is prejudicial
or ignorant, perhaps.

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Something that perhaps
mischaracterizes

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the Asian community or
again, any other marginalized

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community.

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To be an ally is not
only to identify yourself

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as someone who doesn't use
those phrases or those words,

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or take those actions
and/or act on violence

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toward a certain community.

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It is also that
when somebody does

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use harsh words or ignorant
words to actually call them

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out and say, "What do you
think you mean when you

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say this particular
slur," or "Why

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would you use that language?"

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It can be as small as just
around your dining room

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table with your family
in the evening, perhaps

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just entering into
that discourse,

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and seeing how far you can get
in terms of talking with others

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and seeing where these
beliefs come from.

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And it's uncomfortable,
it is, but it's

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important work researching
education, self education.

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It's about being uncomfortable,
calling others out

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when you know that
something is not right.

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It's important to keep
in mind to only do so

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when you're physically safe.

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And I think that
that may be something

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that Marc may be able
to speak to as well

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through his bystander training.

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KATRIN: I agree, and
I'm glad you brought up

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the safety component of it.

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And the silence
or the politeness

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is something that will
get uncomfortable.

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And it is something that
when you are being an ally,

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there are so many
things to also consider,

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and safety is one of them
and what is happening

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in the whole situation.

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So I agree.

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Marc, is there anything that
you heard in your training that

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would speak to that?

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Specifically, around
when as bystanders, we

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are being witness to,
whether it's violence

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through speech or physical
violence and racism.

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What do we do and how do we look
at the safety of a situation

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when and if responding?

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MARC FLIEDNER:
Well, first of all,

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it's really good to have these
conversations in advance,

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right?

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So that you are really very
conscious of what action

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you're taking if you find
yourself in such a situation.

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Because the inclination would
be for somebody who is angered,

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by what they're seeing to just
act in kind of a knee jerk way.

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And that really
isn't appropriate,

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because the reality is
if we initiate something

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under unsafe
circumstances for us,

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for the person who may
be being victimized,

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and for everybody
else around us.

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Then we can end up doing
more harm than good.

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So there's this
need for us sadly

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that we have to acquire
this in this moment in time.

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But the need for
us to immediately

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be aware of our
surrounding circumstances.

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If we're talking
about reporting,

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can we safely report
right there or do

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we need to step up to somewhere
else that is more safe,

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or ask someone else
to do it for us?

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How do we prioritize the needs?

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I mean, surely if
there is a person that

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is being actively harmed
and it's still taking place,

248
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then I find that a lot
of us would be compelled

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to try and stop
that, but also we've

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got to take into consideration.

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The individuals that are
perpetrating this action,

252
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are they armed?

253
00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:01,702
Are they in a position
to be able to harm us

254
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or the person that's being
victimized in a way that's

255
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going to make matters worse?

256
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It's this conscious action.

257
00:12:07,120 --> 00:12:09,550
And it's really
interesting that we're

258
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evolving that way as a culture.

259
00:12:11,410 --> 00:12:15,580
I don't know frankly
if 20 years ago,

260
00:12:15,580 --> 00:12:17,530
did we have cell
phones 20 years ago?

261
00:12:17,530 --> 00:12:19,602
If before cell
phones existed, if we

262
00:12:19,602 --> 00:12:21,310
would have thought
the idea of holding up

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00:12:21,310 --> 00:12:24,670
our camera and recording
something would be safe.

264
00:12:24,670 --> 00:12:27,250
And maybe it wasn't at
first, because frankly, I've

265
00:12:27,250 --> 00:12:29,950
observed police officers
and others not liking it

266
00:12:29,950 --> 00:12:31,472
when they're recorded.

267
00:12:31,472 --> 00:12:33,430
And certainly, if somebody
is harming somebody,

268
00:12:33,430 --> 00:12:35,800
they don't want the
crime to be recorded.

269
00:12:35,800 --> 00:12:37,840
But we have to even
consider, when is it

270
00:12:37,840 --> 00:12:39,550
safe to pull up that camera?

271
00:12:39,550 --> 00:12:41,260
When is it safe to take a photo?

272
00:12:41,260 --> 00:12:42,940
When is it safe to video?

273
00:12:42,940 --> 00:12:47,020
And these are going to be unique
to each and every circumstance

274
00:12:47,020 --> 00:12:51,070
that we have to be sort of
hyper aware of our surroundings.

275
00:12:51,070 --> 00:12:52,430
It's asking a lot of us.

276
00:12:52,430 --> 00:12:56,950
But when people are under siege
like our brothers and sisters

277
00:12:56,950 --> 00:12:59,380
in the AAPI community
are right now,

278
00:12:59,380 --> 00:13:01,660
unfortunately,
there's a necessity

279
00:13:01,660 --> 00:13:05,080
to be prepared in the
ways that I'm describing.

280
00:13:05,080 --> 00:13:07,960
KATRIN: And as we are seeing
people coming together

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00:13:07,960 --> 00:13:10,030
and our communities
are trying to support

282
00:13:10,030 --> 00:13:14,200
being supportive of
marginalized communities.

283
00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:17,650
We have to look also to the
leaders of those communities.

284
00:13:17,650 --> 00:13:20,290
And what are some
things that we could

285
00:13:20,290 --> 00:13:23,200
hope to see coming from
our community leaders

286
00:13:23,200 --> 00:13:25,480
to show commitment to
change, to show commitment

287
00:13:25,480 --> 00:13:29,560
to really looking at what's
happening in our communities,

288
00:13:29,560 --> 00:13:33,490
and ensuring that the work is
going to start getting done?

289
00:13:33,490 --> 00:13:35,320
I certainly don't
want to say ensuring

290
00:13:35,320 --> 00:13:37,900
that change is going to happen
because we have a long way

291
00:13:37,900 --> 00:13:38,710
to go.

292
00:13:38,710 --> 00:13:42,160
But ensuring that there's a
commitment to doing the work.

293
00:13:42,160 --> 00:13:43,840
What can we expect,
or what should we

294
00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:47,133
look for to our
leaders for this?

295
00:13:47,133 --> 00:13:49,300
MARC FLIEDNER: Erica touched
on these things before.

296
00:13:49,300 --> 00:13:51,640
It's about education.

297
00:13:51,640 --> 00:13:54,670
It's about coming
straight out and saying,

298
00:13:54,670 --> 00:13:57,250
what's being asserted about--

299
00:13:57,250 --> 00:13:59,650
oh, my goodness, where
the virus came from

300
00:13:59,650 --> 00:14:01,780
or where any
problem came from is

301
00:14:01,780 --> 00:14:06,970
based on completely unfactual,
inaccurate information.

302
00:14:06,970 --> 00:14:10,240
And buying into these things
is exposing ignorance.

303
00:14:10,240 --> 00:14:13,180
It's community leaders, not
only taking it upon themselves

304
00:14:13,180 --> 00:14:15,400
to educate themselves
about what's

305
00:14:15,400 --> 00:14:20,110
right, but also to speak that
truth as every opportunity

306
00:14:20,110 --> 00:14:22,060
they to get to a
microphone, which they have

307
00:14:22,060 --> 00:14:23,710
more opportunities than we do.

308
00:14:23,710 --> 00:14:26,050
And also frankly, it's
sometimes also calling out

309
00:14:26,050 --> 00:14:31,180
other policymakers who have
made a terrible habit of using

310
00:14:31,180 --> 00:14:34,840
these unfortunate
references to the virus that

311
00:14:34,840 --> 00:14:36,070
imply that they are--

312
00:14:36,070 --> 00:14:39,290
that one group is responsible
for them and things like that.

313
00:14:39,290 --> 00:14:43,420
And I think, it's also the
policymakers making a pledge

314
00:14:43,420 --> 00:14:47,500
that where there is
criminal conduct being

315
00:14:47,500 --> 00:14:49,030
committed against folks.

316
00:14:49,030 --> 00:14:53,290
Or even conduct that continues
to marginalize folks.

317
00:14:53,290 --> 00:14:56,350
You know, and it's repetitive
nature that there's

318
00:14:56,350 --> 00:14:57,780
accountability for that.

319
00:14:57,780 --> 00:15:02,140
That everybody who was in an
opportunity to Hate Crimes Task

320
00:15:02,140 --> 00:15:03,830
Force of the NYPD.

321
00:15:03,830 --> 00:15:07,040
Those that who can hold
people responsible by lawsuits

322
00:15:07,040 --> 00:15:09,530
and things like that that
there be accountability,

323
00:15:09,530 --> 00:15:13,460
because the reality is
that these kinds of trends

324
00:15:13,460 --> 00:15:16,040
don't tend to stop
until we unite

325
00:15:16,040 --> 00:15:18,830
and find a lot of
different creative tools

326
00:15:18,830 --> 00:15:19,802
to make them stop.

327
00:15:19,802 --> 00:15:22,010
ERICA MOLINA: And I think
that's exactly right, Marc.

328
00:15:22,010 --> 00:15:25,820
I'm glad that you said those
examples of leadership,

329
00:15:25,820 --> 00:15:29,750
because that in itself is
what it means to be an ally.

330
00:15:29,750 --> 00:15:31,370
You take those actions.

331
00:15:31,370 --> 00:15:33,410
You call them out.

332
00:15:33,410 --> 00:15:36,950
You call for accountability
just as important.

333
00:15:36,950 --> 00:15:39,350
And just as important
as saying that something

334
00:15:39,350 --> 00:15:42,140
is wrong or misinformed
or incorrect

335
00:15:42,140 --> 00:15:45,560
is calling for a
correction of that wrong.

336
00:15:45,560 --> 00:15:48,800
Calling for accountability
of a particular action

337
00:15:48,800 --> 00:15:52,310
or particular words
and particular--

338
00:15:52,310 --> 00:15:54,510
there are so many
opportunities for that.

339
00:15:54,510 --> 00:15:58,330
And I think that once an ally
begins doing that research,

340
00:15:58,330 --> 00:16:01,070
they talked, about that
self education to the extent

341
00:16:01,070 --> 00:16:03,200
that they're not
already educated

342
00:16:03,200 --> 00:16:06,590
or need to learn a bit more
about what really is going on.

343
00:16:06,590 --> 00:16:09,470
The more I think the
research is done.

344
00:16:09,470 --> 00:16:11,300
And it is as simple
as just looking

345
00:16:11,300 --> 00:16:13,970
online at various resources.

346
00:16:13,970 --> 00:16:16,010
It really is that simple.

347
00:16:16,010 --> 00:16:18,140
Once you start
looking into it, you

348
00:16:18,140 --> 00:16:22,010
start identifying opportunities
in your day to day life

349
00:16:22,010 --> 00:16:25,760
to be able to take
those actions.

350
00:16:25,760 --> 00:16:29,480
And even though we may think
of leadership in these issues

351
00:16:29,480 --> 00:16:32,960
to be perhaps outside
of us or above us

352
00:16:32,960 --> 00:16:36,260
in a certain hierarchical
way, the truth

353
00:16:36,260 --> 00:16:39,440
also is that we can
be our own leaders.

354
00:16:39,440 --> 00:16:41,900
And we can be leaders in
this movement as well.

355
00:16:41,900 --> 00:16:45,920
Simply by being a part of
the positive change both big,

356
00:16:45,920 --> 00:16:48,170
but also very small.

357
00:16:48,170 --> 00:16:50,840
So I'm glad that you did bring
up the leadership aspect.

358
00:16:50,840 --> 00:16:52,347
Everybody can take part in it.

359
00:16:52,347 --> 00:16:53,930
KATRIN: And I think
that's a great way

360
00:16:53,930 --> 00:16:56,840
to segue into what
DRNY's is doing

361
00:16:56,840 --> 00:17:01,830
as having a lot of information
to bring to the table,

362
00:17:01,830 --> 00:17:04,910
especially around the
intersectionality of disability

363
00:17:04,910 --> 00:17:07,490
and the AAPI community.

364
00:17:07,490 --> 00:17:09,560
And making sure
that our information

365
00:17:09,560 --> 00:17:12,720
is in fact available to them.

366
00:17:12,720 --> 00:17:15,050
We talked a little
bit about access

367
00:17:15,050 --> 00:17:16,730
and what that looks like.

368
00:17:16,730 --> 00:17:19,579
And for us, and
for my department,

369
00:17:19,579 --> 00:17:23,660
specifically, we look at access
as how many people can we

370
00:17:23,660 --> 00:17:26,720
get our information
to and have it

371
00:17:26,720 --> 00:17:28,470
make an impact on their life.

372
00:17:28,470 --> 00:17:30,140
And one of the
ways we can do that

373
00:17:30,140 --> 00:17:34,080
is ensuring that the
languages are available.

374
00:17:34,080 --> 00:17:37,580
So I'm going to take this
opportunity to put a call out,

375
00:17:37,580 --> 00:17:41,300
a call-to-action to
anyone who is listening

376
00:17:41,300 --> 00:17:43,850
in our audience,
who needs to have

377
00:17:43,850 --> 00:17:45,680
any of our information
brought to them

378
00:17:45,680 --> 00:17:47,330
in a different language.

379
00:17:47,330 --> 00:17:51,080
Please send us some information
and contact at DRNY.

380
00:17:51,080 --> 00:17:53,660
We are doing our
internal work here

381
00:17:53,660 --> 00:17:57,740
to assess what languages we
can start having information

382
00:17:57,740 --> 00:17:59,450
translated into.

383
00:17:59,450 --> 00:18:03,390
But we also would love to hear
from the community as a whole.

384
00:18:03,390 --> 00:18:06,000
And so language
access is an issue.

385
00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:08,360
And that's something
that we try to address

386
00:18:08,360 --> 00:18:10,160
on a couple of different levels.

387
00:18:10,160 --> 00:18:13,040
And so, Erica or
Marc, do either of you

388
00:18:13,040 --> 00:18:17,220
want to add to language
as an access issue?

389
00:18:17,220 --> 00:18:21,100
And how do we
address that at DRNY?

390
00:18:21,100 --> 00:18:23,600
ERICA MOLINA: Well, I think
it's exactly what you just said,

391
00:18:23,600 --> 00:18:27,170
Katrin, is that DRNY
seeking specific steps

392
00:18:27,170 --> 00:18:30,590
to clearly through one
of our tasks forces

393
00:18:30,590 --> 00:18:33,440
and through your department,
the marketing department,

394
00:18:33,440 --> 00:18:35,300
as well as the
Cultural Linguistic

395
00:18:35,300 --> 00:18:39,740
Competency and Outreach
Task Force here at DRNY.

396
00:18:39,740 --> 00:18:41,810
That particular group
is taking the lead

397
00:18:41,810 --> 00:18:45,110
on this project at the
moment, as I understand it

398
00:18:45,110 --> 00:18:47,060
with your assistance, of course.

399
00:18:47,060 --> 00:18:52,010
And to be clear, we've already
begun quite a long time ago

400
00:18:52,010 --> 00:18:54,770
in translating many,
many of our resources

401
00:18:54,770 --> 00:18:58,980
into different languages,
such as Spanish, Chinese.

402
00:18:58,980 --> 00:19:03,200
Also, obviously, for the Deaf
and hard of hearing community

403
00:19:03,200 --> 00:19:08,780
having our podcasts and
other video resources

404
00:19:08,780 --> 00:19:12,500
having to include ASL or
American Sign Language

405
00:19:12,500 --> 00:19:14,540
interpretation in those as well.

406
00:19:14,540 --> 00:19:17,600
That's all language
and that's all access.

407
00:19:17,600 --> 00:19:21,530
What we want and what I think
you put a good call up there

408
00:19:21,530 --> 00:19:24,080
for is for any
particular community

409
00:19:24,080 --> 00:19:28,070
who thinks that there would be
a benefit possibly taking it

410
00:19:28,070 --> 00:19:30,380
a step further and
translating into that language

411
00:19:30,380 --> 00:19:33,350
that we perhaps
haven't gotten to yet.

412
00:19:33,350 --> 00:19:34,778
That would be immensely helpful.

413
00:19:34,778 --> 00:19:37,070
What we want to make sure
that we're doing here at DRNY

414
00:19:37,070 --> 00:19:41,250
is serving the disability
community first and foremost.

415
00:19:41,250 --> 00:19:44,630
And as we know, the disability
community is hugely varied

416
00:19:44,630 --> 00:19:48,240
and affects everyone
every single day.

417
00:19:48,240 --> 00:19:51,110
So what we want to ensure
is that our resources are

418
00:19:51,110 --> 00:19:53,240
reaching everyone that it can.

419
00:19:53,240 --> 00:19:57,530
And again, if a community person
out there or a group of people,

420
00:19:57,530 --> 00:20:00,230
or just individuals
want to reach out to us

421
00:20:00,230 --> 00:20:02,900
and recommend specific
language, especially

422
00:20:02,900 --> 00:20:05,835
if they have certain fact
sheet, or certain brochure

423
00:20:05,835 --> 00:20:07,670
or other publications
that they've already

424
00:20:07,670 --> 00:20:09,240
seen for us in mind.

425
00:20:09,240 --> 00:20:12,120
That would be helpful in
spurring us along and making

426
00:20:12,120 --> 00:20:14,520
sure that we're translating
the right things

427
00:20:14,520 --> 00:20:15,870
in the right order.

428
00:20:15,870 --> 00:20:19,650
And prioritizing as best we
can with those communities

429
00:20:19,650 --> 00:20:21,283
need from us right now.

430
00:20:21,283 --> 00:20:22,200
KATRIN: Thanks, Erica.

431
00:20:22,200 --> 00:20:22,860
That's right.

432
00:20:22,860 --> 00:20:24,720
We have started this project.

433
00:20:24,720 --> 00:20:27,510
And certainly having
as much information

434
00:20:27,510 --> 00:20:31,170
as we can get from our
audience will help the project

435
00:20:31,170 --> 00:20:33,250
be as robust as it can be.

436
00:20:33,250 --> 00:20:34,530
So thank you for that.

437
00:20:34,530 --> 00:20:37,247
Marc, is there anything
you want to add?

438
00:20:37,247 --> 00:20:39,330
MARC FLIEDNER: No, I think
that my colleague Erica

439
00:20:39,330 --> 00:20:40,770
Molina stated it very well.

440
00:20:40,770 --> 00:20:43,710
We're always trying to look at
the whole person here at DRNY.

441
00:20:43,710 --> 00:20:45,345
But these are
conscious decisions

442
00:20:45,345 --> 00:20:47,130
is that we're making
as an organization

443
00:20:47,130 --> 00:20:49,950
and as individuals, whether
we're serving the clients,

444
00:20:49,950 --> 00:20:52,080
whether we're reaching
out to clients.

445
00:20:52,080 --> 00:20:53,610
We're trying to
find in the places

446
00:20:53,610 --> 00:20:56,020
where they gather
on their terms.

447
00:20:56,020 --> 00:21:00,540
And I think it's the antidote
to the "othering," if you will,

448
00:21:00,540 --> 00:21:03,390
that is causing
people to call out

449
00:21:03,390 --> 00:21:07,600
members of the AAPI community
as being separate from them.

450
00:21:07,600 --> 00:21:08,980
New York state is anything.

451
00:21:08,980 --> 00:21:13,260
It's a very diverse and
varied, and beautifully,

452
00:21:13,260 --> 00:21:15,540
culturally-varied community.

453
00:21:15,540 --> 00:21:17,830
And we should be looking at
that as a positive and not

454
00:21:17,830 --> 00:21:18,805
a negative.

455
00:21:18,805 --> 00:21:19,680
KATRIN: That's right.

456
00:21:19,680 --> 00:21:22,130
And I will say again
the email address

457
00:21:22,130 --> 00:21:24,950
if you have information
for us on specific,

458
00:21:24,950 --> 00:21:27,080
whether it's fact
sheet or piece of media

459
00:21:27,080 --> 00:21:29,990
that you would like to
suggest a language for.

460
00:21:29,990 --> 00:21:33,410
You can email us
at contact@drny.org

461
00:21:33,410 --> 00:21:37,160
and we will list that in the
description of this podcast.

462
00:21:37,160 --> 00:21:39,570
Erica, Marc, thank you so
much for your time today.

463
00:21:39,570 --> 00:21:43,040
I look forward to talking
with you both again soon.

464
00:21:43,040 --> 00:21:45,350
Empire State of Rights:
Closed Captioned

465
00:21:45,350 --> 00:21:48,600
has been brought to you by
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466
00:21:48,600 --> 00:21:52,080
Your source for disability
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467
00:21:52,080 --> 00:21:55,320
If you enjoyed our program,
make sure to subscribe, like,

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00:21:55,320 --> 00:21:57,060
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470
00:21:58,670 --> 00:22:03,830
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471
00:22:03,830 --> 00:22:06,010
or comment below.

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00:22:06,010 --> 00:22:07,980
Tune in next
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00:22:07,980 --> 00:22:11,040
bring you more information
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00:22:11,040 --> 00:22:12,910
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475
00:22:12,910 --> 00:22:16,260
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476
00:22:16,260 --> 00:22:19,300
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