Social Justice Social Posts

The objective of this project focused on creative typography and visual design for a social justice campaign. Additionally, this project required doing research on the subject and including an interactive demonstration of the social posts within Instagram’s UI.

the process

research

Social Post #1: Informative Facts

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islander) communities experienced an increase in discrimination, hate, and violence against them.
A few AAPI organizations responded by creating the coalition, Stop AAPI Hate, which “tracks and responds to incidents of hate, violence, harassment, discrimination, shunning, and child bullying against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the United States.¹” They aim to help dismantle systemic racism by also recognizing that their work must include BIPOC communities (Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color).
Between March 2020 and June 2021, 9,081 anti-Asian incidents were reported to the Stop AAPI Hate coalition.²
In the Study of Hate & Extremism conducted at the California State University of San Bernardino, anti-Asian hate crimes increased by 149% in 2020 compared to the previous year. This study examined police data from 16 of the largest cities in America.³
2021 surpassed the anti-Asian crime rate with a 339% increase with most reports coming from major cities like NY, LA, and SF. Black communities continued to face the largest amount of crime and discrimination. Some reasons for these increases in hate are from the loosening of COVID-19 restrictions, allowing more opportunities for violence and crime.⁴

1 Stop AAPI Hate. (2022, June 16). Retrieved September 12, 2022, from https://stopaapihate.org/about/ 
2 The Associated Press. (2021, August 12). More than 9,000 Anti-Asian incidents have been reported since the pandemic began. NPR. Retrieved September 12, 2022, from https://www.npr.org/2021/08/12/1027236499/anti-asian-hate-crimes-assaults-pandemic-incidents-aapi 
3 California State University, San Bernardino | CSUSB. FACT SHEET: Anti‐Asian Prejudice March 2020 – Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism. (n.d.). Retrieved September 12, 2022, from https://www.csusb.edu/sites/default/files/FACT%20SHEET-%20Anti-Asian%20Hate%202020%20rev%203.21.21.pdf 
4 NBCUniversal News Group. (2022, February 14). Anti-asian hate crimes increased 339 percent nationwide last year, report says. NBC News. Retrieved September 12, 2022, from https://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/anti-asian-hate-crimes-increased-339-percent-nationwide-last-year-repo-rcna14282

Social Post #2: Take Action and Support

The Stop AAPI Hate coalition offers a way to report hate incidents on its website.¹

They encourage witnesses and those who experience hate against the AAPI community to speak out and acknowledge unwanted and unacceptable behavior. Reporting an incident can help bring awareness to the importance of protecting the AAPI community.
They offer a template resolution document to help allies and victims engage with the greater community about facing racial biases, having difficult conversations, learning about ways to support the AAPI community through policy and programs, and how to advocate for civil rights protections for the communities that face racism.

The website Songtrust put together a great article of resources as a way to show solidarity with the AAPI community.²

Donate and learn about AAPI leaders and organizations like Asian Mental Health Collective and Asian Americans for Equality.
Educate yourself through books and podcasts. The article provides episodes and articles about how supporting AAPI and BIPOC must be intersectional.

PBS compiled an article highlighting ways to take action in support of the AAPI community.³

They stressed the importance of reporting hate incidents, taking bystander intervention training, checking in on your AAPI peers, holding elected officials accountable, and staying educated about the history of discrimination against AAPI.

1 Stop AAPI Hate. (2022, June 16). Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://stopaapihate.org/actnow/ 
2 ASIAN-AMERICAN, PACIFIC ISLANDER, AND ASIAN COMMUNITY RESOURCES. SongTrust. (n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://www.songtrust.com/en/stop-aapi-hate-resources 
3 Ramachandran, V. (2021, March 18). What you can do to fight violence and racism against Asian Americans. PBS. Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/what-you-can-do-to-fight-violence-and-racism-against-asian-americans

Social Post #3: Good News and Positive Highlights

President Biden signed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act into law in May 2021 which aims to ease the process of reporting hate crimes while also expediting the review of hate crimes in relation to the pandemic, authorizing grants to support crime-reduction initiatives.¹
$14M was distributed to 80 organizations in CA combating hate incidents, providing legal services, complementary health services, and additional support.²
Two anti-Asian hate bills, No Place for Hate Bills, passed in CA this summer, backed by the Stop AAPI Hate coalition. These bills aim to prevent harassment in public places and are meant to benefit not only the AAPI community but Black and other minority groups. The bills are headed to Gov. Newsom’s desk for approval.³
AAPI moms are fighting back, literally. In addition to spreading awareness and organizing efforts to combat anti-Asian hate, moms in NY and CA are taking self-defense classes so they can empower and protect their children.⁴

1 Sprunt, B. (2021, May 20). Here's what the New Hate Crimes Law aims to do as attacks on Asian americans rise. NPR. Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://www.npr.org/2021/05/20/998599775/biden-to-sign-the-covid-19-hate-crimes-bill-as-anti-asian-american-attacks-rise 
2 California, S. of. (2022, March 31). California distributes $14 million in "Stop the hate" funds to 80 organizations to combat hate incidents. CA.gov. Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://www.gov.ca.gov/2022/03/31/california-distributes-14-million-in-stop-the-hate-funds-to-80-organizations-to-combat-hate-incidents/ 
3 Randall. (2022, August 31). Two anti-Asian hate bills pass unanimously in California. AsAmNews. Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://asamnews.com/2022/08/31/bills-tackle-street-harassment-crimes-on-public-transit-and-discrimination-in-businesses-in-california/
4 Grigsby, L. L. (2022, August 31). Meet the moms who are fighting Anti-Asian hate. Parents. Retrieved September 13, 2022, from https://www.parents.com/kids/responsibility/racism/meet-the-moms-who-are-fighting-anti-asian-hate/