#ICantBreathe

On Twitter, the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter has been trending for a while now, only to be rebutted by hashtags like #AllLivesMatter.

#AllLivesMatter completely misses the point of #BlackLivesMatter. It snatches away the attention from the problem and makes it sound as though non-Black people go through the same treatment that Black people do. It’s pretty much the equivalent of #NotAllMen in answer to the #YesAllWomen campaign.

As a cow of Asian descent, I don’t live in fear that I might one day be killed by a cop because of my skin color. When I go jogging outside, I don’t fear that people would see me running and think I’m a criminal attempting escape. When I hold up earrings to my ears at the store, I don’t fear that the salesperson is going to think I’m a shoplifter. I can wear my hoodie with my hood up without fearing that some vigilante is going to hunt me down for being suspicious. Because I am not Black, I don’t have to worry about these things. There are plenty of stereotypes which are applied to me as an Asian cow, but being at the receiving end of a cop whose immediate reaction upon seeing me is “DANGER! DANGER!” is not one of them.

Therefore, as someone who isn’t Black and doesn’t have to deal with this much danger everyday, the best thing I can do is acknowledge that there is a problem and it’s time we stop crying out “All lives matter” and . . . listen.

With that in mind, here are a few hashtags worthy of a look:

#LivingWhileBlack

#AliveWhileBlack (especially #AliveWhileBlack + teachers)

#ICantBreathe

#ThisStopsToday