Violent hate crimes perpetrated in Atlanta this month have brought national attention to racism against the Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. The AAPI community has faced racist attacks for far longer, and has struggled to have their voices heard by those outside their community.
There have been nearly 3,800 recorded instances of hate crimes against the AAPI community in the past year.
Last June, NAIOPWA publicly committed to doing the work to address racism head-on by bringing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) topics and education to the forefront for the professional CRE community throughout our region. It is incumbent upon every single one of us to bring attention to these injustices now and always.
NAIOPWA stands in support of the AAPI community and all those who fall victim to racist attacks and hate crimes. We encourage all our members, friends and colleagues to join us in a stand against racism, terrorism and violence.
“This isn’t just about programming for us. This is about a group of people called to action on something we are very passionate about, and we felt we had no choice but to do something.” – Serena Sayani, Diversity and Inclusion Co-Chair
In the moments, days and weeks since the death of George Floyd, many of our members have felt a similar call to action. Leading this charge for our organization is the Diversity and Inclusion committee. They have put together two events: A Candid Discussion about Racial Barriers in Commercial Real Estate, on June 30, and, in partnership with the Programs Committee, our July breakfast on Race and Real Estate, on July 15. Both panels are intended to shed light on the intersections between race and real estate through discussion of the history of real estate laws across the country, and to spark thoughtful dialogue with industry leaders on how to make positive changes to alleviate racial inequities in our communities and the built environment.