A Call to Action in Solidarity with Our AAPI Community berkeley.edu - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from berkeley.edu Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
For UC Berkeley freshman Luke Wonzen, what started as an attempt to find a hangout spot outside with a friend during a pandemic became an experience that “really highlighted the life cycle of the food” that is, volunteering at Berkeley Student Farms, or BSF.
BSF is a coalition of seven student-run garden spaces on campus that prioritizes food sovereignty and security, according to BSF volunteer Gabrielle Cohen.
Before the pandemic, a large portion of the campus population was food insecure and used services provided by the Basic Needs Center. As the pandemic exacerbated such insecurities, BSF helped to meet the increased demand for food by providing fresh organic produce to those in need and supplying 50% of the produce distributed at the Basic Needs Center’s Food Pantry last summer, Cohen said.
Anti-Asian hate crimes have risen significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, with reporting database Stop AAPI Hate receiving almost 3,000 accounts of hate crimes since spring 2020.
Although roughly one in four Bay Area residents is Asian, according to Bay Area Census data, this region is not an exception to the national trend. There have been multiple documented instances of violent anti-Asian sentiment and attacks in the past few months, with some directed at those of Asian descent over the age of 60.
In response to the issue, UC Berkeley Chancellor Carol Christ sent out a campuswide email Tuesday in support of the Asian community, expressing sympathy and solidarity with those who are affected by this violence. In the email, Christ provided resources for those in need, which included websites for reporting incidents, campus counseling and campus affinity groups.