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My heart is with the Black community, filled with rage and disappointment at the injustice here.

Rick Chow is a murderous anti-Black child-killer with a history of being trigger-happy. He’s been involved in two shootings prior to this, and this time he killed a Black child. We know that this is nothing a Black person would get away with under the oppressive penal systems of America. But Chow walks, Scot-free.

Cyrus was just a baby, a 14 year old boy who probably has only just started learning graphs in class. Who has not even had his 15th birthday nor graduated the 9th grade. He was still in junior high.

There’s more details to the case for those who want to go investigating. But none of which at all exonerates this man of his cruelty and the blood on him, and his family’s hands (both his son and wife involved).

But the injustice remains and this is grief for the Black community which I can only hope the Asian community takes the time to decenter ourselves and stand in support of Cyrus and his family, in empathising with the Black community’s terror in the face of this innocent life taken by a anti-Black NB man, and the justice system which has failed them again.

This is Latasha Harlins all over again. It’s heartbreaking. And yes the AsAm community has to fucking ostracise the Chows, start a protest, raise some funds. Apologising is one thing but it’s empty without material reparations, especially when we KNOW the system won’t deliver.

Cyrus’ family has stated they will continue fighting. The Black community is grieving. The Asian community should not contribute to that boot on their necks nor benefit from the horrors of this system. We should not be centering our own shame or fear, but centering the Black community’s expressed grievances with the dehumanisation and terror they must be facing as a consequence of this murder. We must show loud and meaningful support for the Black community.

We can’t let this slide, this is literally a core moment that requires Asians to step the fuck up, and ensure what happened in the 90s does not come to fruition again.

If Asian Americans are against the death of children, including all Black children, please boycott the Chows. Do everything in your power to ensure that all melanated peoples band together to bring justice for the Carmack-Beltons where the system is designed to fail them, and to ensure that Black people aren't alone in this.

AsAms need to be LOUD about this injustice and in support of Black communities, LOUDER than the skinfolk traitors amongst us who are cruel, inhumane, and anti-Black. LOUDER than those those whose behaviours fuel the ideas that AsAms are just performative Boba Liberals and anti-Black racists. LOUDER than shame or fear because we do not get to center ourselves when the Black community's grief and terror for their babies are overflowing.