Hundreds of people volunteer to counsel elderly Asian Americans to help protect them

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It was the second video of an unprovoked attack on an elderly Asian American that Azevedo, an Oakland resident, had seen on social media from the Bay Area within an hour, he told CNN.

Since the world learned of the new coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, China, harassment and violence against the Asian-American and Pacific Islander community in the United States has grown rapidly.

Between March 19 and December 31, 2020, more than 2,808 firsthand reports of anti-Asian hatred from 47 states and the District of Columbia were reported, with 7.3% of those incidents involving Asian Americans over the age of 60, according to a report from Stop AAPI Hate, a coalition documenting anti-Asian hatred and discrimination during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Exhausted by the violence, Azevedo offered on social media to walk with someone in Oakland’s Chinatown neighborhood to help them feel safe.

“I wasn’t going to be some kind of vigilante,” Azevedo, 26, told CNN. “I just wanted to give people some comfort.”

His idea quickly found resonance throughout the community and within days he had nearly 300 volunteers to join him to protect the community in a project now called Compassion in Oakland.

Azevedo, who is of Hispanic descent, believes this is a time for all minority groups to show solidarity with the Asian-American community. He said people of all racial backgrounds and ages wanted to contact him with the same desire to help support the community.

“This is important because this community just needs a cure,” said Azevedo. “There is a lot of racial tension because of the previous president’s rhetoric, but in general our communities need a cure. This is a problem that has been going on for a while.”

Stop APPI Hate Co-founder, Cynthia Choi, told CNN that crime and violence is nothing new to the Asian community.

“This is a problem and one that is not receiving much attention, especially in low-income communities,” said Choi. “And of course, I think, the pandemic has exacerbated conditions and exposed racial inequalities.”

Choi said that in times of crisis, when vulnerable people are targeted, it’s heartening to see members of the community come out and take action.

“In Oakland they are planning this action and it’s actually less about control and more about supporting the community and showing up,” she said. “It shows our elders who are scared, afraid to leave their homes, that we are here, we want to support you, we are holding you now.”

Azevedo hopes that in the future the organization can work with law enforcement officials to protect the community.

“We all need to come together if we hope we can make it a safer community in the coming years,” Azevedo said.

The group planned a soft launch of the project on Saturday with a few volunteer groups on the street. They hope to continue to raise awareness of the problem in the community.

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