Asian Perspectives During COVID: Introduction
A Collaborative between the Asian Health Caucus and the Asian Health Institute at UCSF
Individual experiences of racism are seldom specified in mass media reports. We may see racism mentioned in generic terms like “Increase in violence towards Asians”, or well-meaning statements like “That [Asian] victim can be your grandmother”. Missing in the message is the individual’s own experience. To fill this void, the Asian Caucas and the Asian Health Institute at UCSF collaborated together to survey people within our Asian communities, on their personal experiences of racism and their reactions on individual levels.
Participants were recruited to answer a Qualtrics survey via the Asian Health Institute’s (AHI) newsletter. This survey asked multiple choice questions and themes regarding each individuals’ experience during CoVID. We collected data on perspectives including Anti-Asian Violence, Media Portrayal, Model Minority Myth, and Vaccine Difficulties/Successes. The qualitative survey was publicized multiple times in the AHI newsletter for from April to June 2021 to recruit participants, until saturation of the themes was reached in the survey answers.
Results of the survey will be shared with you in the several upcoming posts, starting with this one.
The first post shows the breakdown of basic demographic features including participants’ location, age, and ethnic/cultural backgrounds:
Demographics Summary
We allow multiple responses in the survey, with demographic questions optional. About 70% of participants gave demographic information. Ages of respondents ranged from 18 to 87, with an average of 50. Professions included retirees, students, physicians, healthcare workers, researchers, ITs, administrative staff, financial staff, nurses, engineers, CEO, legal, and so on. Most respondents are from the bay area. Ethnic backgrounds include a variety of Asian and mixed races.
Be on the lookout for our Next Post: Perspectives on Anti-Asian Violence