Balanced Advocacy...

Hello, friends! 

I've been thinking a lot about advocacy lately, particularly when it comes to matters of race and ethnicity in the US.  There have been a few different events that have brought this up, including the Trayvon Martin shooting, trial, and verdict, a few unfortunate missteps by some prominent church leaders, and a trip to Memphis to the Civil Rights Museum.  There was also an Asian American Association General Body Meeting a few weeks ago that talked about hate and how to combat it. 

As I've thought more and more about it, I've come to this conclusion: as much as we want to believe that standing up for our rights is the best way to change things, and I believe that it does work to a certain extent, I believe that the best way for us to see injustice eradicated, hate put to death, and a real understanding of racial reconciliation is if we stop just advocating for OURSELVES and start advocating for OTHERS. 

To my African-American brothers and sisters: We, as Asian-Americans, need your help.  Your struggle for equality and justice goes back further that ours and you have won many more battles.  You have endured more injustices here in the US than my Asian-American brothers and sisters can even count and through your fight you have gained so much.  We need you to stand up on our behalf because you are probably better at advocacy than we are. 

To my Latino-American brothers and sisters: We, as Asian-Americans, need your help.  You are the fastest growing minority group in the US and your numbers are only going to continue to grow.  If you advocate on our behalf we will have numbers that will make those in power (of all ethnicities) stop and listen to what we (being you and us) have to say. 

To my Caucasian brothers and sisters: We, as Asian-Americans, need your help.  Let's not beat around the bush.  You are the majority culture.  You hold most of the offices of power in the US and that includes places of business, media, and politics.  You set the agenda.  If you advocate on our behalf it will do one of two things.  It will give our voice a place to be heard, yes, but I think more importantly, it will show others that whatever injustices we suffer are not just a "minority" thing but an actual injustice.

To my Asian-American brothers and sisters: We, as Asian-Americans need to get off our butts and start caring about the rest of the country.  For better or worse, we are the bridge that spans the gap between our Caucasian brothers and sisters and our African-American and Latino-American brothers and sisters.  To put it crudely, White folk aren't as afraid of us as they are of other minorities.  We need to use this power to foster understanding and we need to stand up for the injustices that we see happen to our brothers and sisters of color. 

Originally, I was going to post about how important it is to balance time and energy between caring about issues that plague "our kind" vs. issues that plague "someone else's people" but as I thought about it more, I believe that the call is not for balance in terms of equal time as much as it is balance in terms of making sure that we are all moving closer to the goal.  Honestly, when it is "your people" getting up to advocate isn't all that hard.  It comes naturally.  The hard part is when it is "someone else's people."  That's when we really have to think and act intentionally. 

I follow Jesus.  That is what I do.  What that means is that I am called to bring the Kingdom of God, one of righteousness, justice, love, and mercy, to Earth.  That doesn't mean just for my people but for those who are oppressed, regardless of how they are oppressed or who is oppressing them. 

Have an excellent day!   

~Adam