When Your Country Doesn’t Trust You
In the past year, reports of anti-Asian hate crimes have spiked in major cities. A lot of this is attributed to anti-Asian rhetoric about the pandemic. But the hard truth is that whenever tensions escalate between the United States and Asian nations overseas, Asian-Americans bear the brunt of that anger at home. In this episode, we hear from US Congressman Andy Kim about how the power competition between China and the US creates fear and anxiety on the home front, which often escalates to anti-Asian rhetoric. Then, we hear the stories of two scientists, Wen Ho Lee and Xiaoxing Xi. Both were racially profiled by the FBI—and falsely accused of spying for the Chinese government.
Read Joyce Xi’s op-ed in USA Today.
Guests:
Rep. Andy Kim, (D-NJ)
Helen Zia, journalist, activist and author of many books including Last Boat out of Shanghai and My Country vs. Me
George Koo, retired business consultant and writer
Joyce Xi, community advocate