Message of Support for Our Students

March 23, 2021

GLS Director Anne Whisnant penned this message to students in the wake of last week's horrific attack on Asian American-owned businesses in the Atlanta area and the increasing incidence of racially motivated attacks against the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community in the United States.

Dear GLS Students,

I'm writing with special thought today for those of you from Asia who bring so much to our program. The unspeakable violence visited against eight people (including six women of Asian descent) in Atlanta, Georgia on Tuesday is so very troubling and disturbing. It is yet another reminder (not that we needed one) of how racism and misogyny are so often intertwined.

I can imagine that these events may have left you feeling vulnerable and frightened. I'm frightened by them, too. We have so much work to do here in the United States to forthrightly confront the persistent, corrosive, and multi-pronged effects of systems of white supremacy and patriarchy.

Since some of the complex dynamics contributing to this particular incident may be new to some of you, I wanted to share an article I found insightful and helpful, written by my friend and former UNC colleague, Dr. Jennifer Ho, president of the Association for Asian American Studies and now Director of the Center for Humanities & Arts at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Click here to read Dr. Ho’s piece.

What I most want to convey right now is how much we at GLS value you — your intelligence, your aspirations, your deep commitment to learning and personal and professional growth, your creativity, your courage in (in many cases) taking up high-level academic study in a language and cultural environment that is not your first. You are incredibly important parts of our community here. Please let me, Lisa, or Kent know if we can support you in any way.

Sincerely,