After a wave of anti-Asian violence across the country last spring, Kansas City came together to show solidarity for local Asians, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Is the support holding up?
Courtesy of Cafe Cà Phê Bety Le Shackelford, community outreach director for Cafe Cà Phê, speaks at a Stop Asian Hate vigil in Kansas City March 28, 2021.
Mayor Quinton Lucas and community leaders are joining Asian and Pacific Islander advocates to recognize AAPI Heritage Month this Saturday, May 8 at 5 p.m. in downtown Kansas City.
Growing up, Bety Le Shackelford felt embarrassed about knowing how to speak Vietnamese. She didn’t want to seem different from the other kids, and begged her mom to only speak English with her in public.
“I just wanted to be seen as an American girl, versus an Asian quote-unquote ‘FOB,’ which means fresh off the boat, ” Shackelford says. “I felt like if I only spoke English, that would be a deterrent to being looked at as different.”