Anchor Judy Hsu opened this week's town hall by illuminating the important place Asian Americans have in American history and their contributions to this country. May is Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, officially designated by Congress on Oct. 23, 1990.
Recently, crimes against the AAPI (Asian American Pacific Islanders) community have skyrocketed. The conversation takes a serious look at this hate crime surge and the public call to action to condemn the violence. A panel of experts talk about their efforts to heighten awareness as well as to pass state legislation to teach AAPI history in Illinois public schools.
Bystander training provided by many community organizations as well as the Dough Something movement, led by a local restaurateur, were also examined.
Guest panelists for this week's town hall include the following:
Grace Pai, Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Chicago
Paul Luu, Chinese American Service League
Beverly Kim, Parachute Restaurant
Ji-Hye Kim, KAN-WIN
The virtual town hall was also exclusively streamed live on ABC 7's Facebook Live, YouTube, ABC 7's app and ABC 7's connected TV apps on Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Android TV and Roku.
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PREVIOUS TOWN HALLS:
Our Chicago: Town hall celebrates Earth Month and efforts by Chicago's local community organizations
Our Chicago: Town hall on keeping Latino youth safe, demands for investment in wake of Adam Toledo shooting
Our Chicago: Town hall on impact of climate change and weather on our environment
Our Chicago: Town hall with Chicago religious leaders addresses trust, safety around COVID-19 vaccines
Our Chicago: Town hall celebrates women entrepreneurs, hosted by Tanja Babich
Our Chicago: Town hall examines city's women in leadership roles amid Women's History Month
Our Chicago: Impact of pandemic recession on working women
Our Chicago: A Conversation About 'Black, Latino Houses Matter' Program
Our Chicago: A Conversation About Vaccine Efforts
Our Chicago: Voices of the Community town hall examines discriminatory effects of redlining
Our Chicago: Voices of the Community town hall on COVID and the vaccine in the Latinx community
Our Chicago: Voices of the Community town hall showcases faith leaders and 'Family Value' anti-violence campaign
Our Chicago: Voices of the Community town hall on blood donations during COVID pandemic hosted by Hosea Sanders
Our Chicago: Voices of the Community town hall on COVID-19 vaccine concerns in communities of color, hosted by Cheryl Burton
Our Chicago: Voices of the Community on Asian American harassment and bystander intervention, moderated by Ravi Baichwal
Our Chicago: Voices of the Community: Significance of Kamala Harris' election to vice president-elect; Cheryl Burton moderates
ABC 7 Chicago hosts digital town hall to recognize Native American Heritage Month; Leah Hope moderates
ABC 7 Chicago hosts digital town hall to explore expectations for office holders after upcoming election
ABC 7 Chicago hosts digital town hall on bullying prevention moderated by Karen Jordan
ABC 7 Chicago presents: Do You Hear Me? A discussion highlighting journey of prominent Latino communities in Chicago hosted by Stacey Baca
ABC 7 Chicago presents: Do You Hear Me? A Conversation about Latinos and the 2020 Census hosted by Rob Elgas
ABC 7 Chicago presents: Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race, a virtual town hall with Windy City Live's Val Warner
ABC 7 Chicago presents: Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race, a virtual town hall with ABC 7's Evelyn Holmes
ABC 7 Chicago presents: Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on August 13 with ABC 7's Evelyn Holmes
ABC 7 Chicago presents: Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race, a virtual town hall with Windy City Live's Val Warner
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on August 6, 2020: Hosted by Samantha Chatman, on mental health in the Black community
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on July 23, 2020: Hosted by WCL's Val Warner, on race and education during COVID-19
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on July 23, 2020: Hosted by Jim Rose, on race and racism in sports
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on July 16, 2020: Hosted by Cheryl Burton, on violence
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on July 9, 2020: Hosted by Samantha Chatman, on Black Greek letter organizations
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on July 2, 2020: Hosted by Hosea Sanders, on summer festivals
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on June 25, 2020: Hostel by Terrell Brown and Leah Hope, on racism in public education
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on June 18, 2020: Hosted by Evelyn Holmes and Will Jones,on youth movements
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on June 11, 2020: Hosted by Karen Jordan and Hosea Sanders, on organizational social change
Do You Hear Me? A Discussion about Race on June 4, 2020: Hosted by Cheryl Burton, on the aftermath of George Floyd's death
About ABC7/WLS-TV Chicago
ABC7/WLS-TV Chicago is the No. 1 local news source and most-watched television station in Chicago. With top-rated daily newscasts spanning decades and the largest social media presence in the market with more than 2.3 million Facebook followers, ABC7 Eyewitness News provides breaking news, investigative reporting, weather, politics, traffic and sports in the multiplatform space to Chicago, the suburbs and northwest Indiana. Named Best News Operation by the Associated Press for four consecutive years, the station produces 41 hours of local news weekly and Chicago's only local weekday entertainment talk show, "Windy City LIVE," as well as its highest-rated New Year's Eve special. ABC7's award-winning programs such as "Heart and Soul," "The Ñ Beat" and "Asian Influences" showcase the city's diversity, while being the only Chicago station producing and broadcasting parades representing Chicago's rich cultural history. In addition to producing town halls focused on current social issues, the station has a long and proud tradition of broadcasting political candidate debates keeping Chicago's electorate informed. ABC7's outreach efforts include annual partnerships with the Red Cross for life-saving blood drives and, most recently, spearheading an effort to raise more than $1.5 million for area food pantries.