A wide mix of ethnic, cultural and faith groups in Bartholomew County is joining forces at 5:30 p.m. Friday to host a rally in support of area Asian Americans.
Organizers said the planned, 30-minute gathering at the City Hall Plaza, 123 Washington St. in downtown Columbus, will be a show of unity in the wake of the killings of six Asian Americans in shootings at Atlanta area spas last week. Police have not determined if race was a factor in the murders in which eight people in total died.
Pastor Felipe Martinez of the local First Presbyterian Church, among the rally organizers, and an outspoken leader on racial harmony and equality, said the goal Friday is simple, though there have been no known recent hate-related incidents against local Asian Americans.
“First and foremost, we want to make sure the Asian American community in Columbus feels seen, heard and supported,” Martinez said. “There has been a lot of racist violence against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders throughout the United States in the last year or so. And then there’s this mass shooting in Atlanta.
“We know that some people are on edge. And this is our opportunity to say to our community siblings that we are with them.”
In a Tuesday interview, Cummins Chairman and CEO Tom Linebarger said the pandemic has resulted in a nationwide increase in hate incidents targeting people of Asian descent over the past year, including Cummins employees in Columbus.
Linebarger told The Republic on Tuesday that Cummins employees of Asian descent have been receiving more discriminatory remarks and threatening looks in public since the pandemic started and “I want to stand up for” employees.
Employees of Asian descent, including some in Columbus, have reported a “pretty wide range of emotions” over the past year due to the increase in incidents across the country, including disappointment, anger, as well as fear and anxiety when going to the grocery store, Linebarger said.
“Things have gotten notably worse in the last year and many of them we’re feeling quite scared about just normal everyday activities,” he said. “They were worried about their parents going outside. That’s how bad it has gotten.”
“There is a heightened level of concern … This is different and worse,” Linebarger said.
What is expected to be a list of five or six speakers, still being finalized, will include Columbus City Council member Elaine Hilber, a Columbus native who is Chinese American.
The event is significant even beyond recent national events. The Bartholomew County Asian population stands at 8.5 percent, and Asian Americans locally are among the fastest-growing demographic.
“I think this is great that people in town have organized this event,” Hilber said. “Columbus always comes out and shows support for people, and that’s one of the things I love most about our community.”
Nic Cable is minister at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Columbus, which has long been a local leader with diversity and equality issues. He will be among Friday’s speakers.
His church is also among the rally organizers, along with the African American Pastor’s Alliance; Columbus Chinese Association; Columbus Interfaith; First Presbyterian Church; First United Methodist Church; Hindu Society of Southern Indiana; Islamic Society of Columbus Indiana; Columbus/Bartholomew County Area chapter of the NAACP; New Black Lives Matter pf Columbus, North Christian Church, and Not In Columbus, which itself includes an array of other race, religious, and ethnic groups.
“Our community must come together in solidarity for our Asian and Asian American community members,” Cable said. “Equally important, we must draw a line in the sand that says racial and gender-based violence is not permitted in the Columbus area. We must say loudly: Not In Columbus.”
City and county leaders such as Mayor Jim Lienhoop and others have said consistently through the years, and especially within the past few years in which racist or related groups have surfaced locally, that local they feel it’s important to encourage harmony and understanding before serious racial or ethnic problems surface. The African American Pastors Alliance has been a very visible entity in this realm, working with local police to build bridges into the Black community.
Lt. Matt Harris, Columbus Police Department spokesman, said he knew of no incidents of area Asian Americans dealing with threats or any hate-oriented incidents. And Columbus Human Rights Executive Director Aida Ramirez said her office has received no recent calls, emails or complaints from or concerning the Asian American community.
“Residents’ safety is at the forefront of our minds at this time,” Ramirez said.
New Black Lives Matter of Columbus President Anthony Hayden, is also among event organizers. He sees it as a way to reinforce the city’s commitment to be welcoming to all.
“I think Columbus is becoming a model city for people of color,” Hayden said. “We have such a coalition now of various (ethnic) groups regularly speaking with each other. And we can regularly present a united front.”
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title=”About the rally” ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
What: Rally for area Asian Americans to show support in the wake of the Atlanta area’s mass shooting last week that killed six Asian Americans.
When: 5:30 p.m. Friday
Where: Columbus City Hall Plaza, 123 Washington St. in downtown Columbus
Safety: Organizers are requesting all who attend to wear a mask and keep a healthy distance from others.
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