Stop AAPI Hate is a left-of-center public advocacy organization created to combat a perceived rise of anti-Asian and anti-Pacific Islander bigotry in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Through public policy advocacy, ¹ research reports, ² and an anonymous hate crime tip line, ³ Stop AAPI Hate seeks to overcome what it perceives as structural racism against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) in the United States. ⁴

Founding and History

Stop AAPI Hate was founded at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic to document reports of anti-Asian racism and advocate against perceived discrimination against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Members of Chinese for Affirmative Action, the Asian American Studies Department at San Francisco State University, and AAPI Equity Alliance formally launched Stop AAPI Hate on March 19, 2020. ⁵

Activities

Stop AAPI Hate conducts research and provides a variety of resources to combat what it sees as a “rise of high-profile attacks” against Asians and people of Asian descent in America. ⁶

One of Stop AAPI Hate’s first projects was “Report Hate” tool, a platform for people to anonymously spread reports of race-based discrimination without reporting the events to law enforcement. ⁷ Stop AAPI Hate claims to have documented thousands of cases of racism against Asians and Pacific Islanders. As a result, the organization says it can “paint a vivid picture of racism and its effect on our communities.” ⁸

Stop AAPI Hate also conducts public policy advocacy to combat what it labels as “systemic racism and other inequities” in America. ⁹ One of its main public policy campaigns is California is No Place for Hate, billed as a multiracial coalition to push public agencies to combat the perceived prevalence of racism in America. ¹⁰ California is No Place for Hate focuses on what it calls the “serious problem” of street harassment against “marginalized groups—including women and girls, people of color, and members of the disabled and LGBTQ+ communities,” who it claims are “disproportionately harmed by street harassment.” ¹¹

Beyond public policy advocacy, Stop AAPI Hate issues a series of reports gathering data and stories on Anti-Asian and Pacific Islander discrimination. In one report entitled “The Blame Game: How Political Rhetoric Inflames Anti-Asian Scapegoating,” Stop AAPI Hate blamed the Trump administration for stoking anti-Asian racism for stating that China was the source of the COVID-19 pandemic. ¹² Politicians acknowledging China as the source of COVID-19 “led to harm against Asians and Asian American,” the group said. ¹³

In its report “Two Years and Thousands of Voices,” Stop AAPI Hate claimed that acts of hatred against the AAPI community happen everywhere “in both large cities and small towns, in AAPI enclaves and in places where AAPI communities are few and far between.” ¹⁴

In 2023, during an interview with Kenny Xu of magazine City Journal, Stop AAPI Hate CEO Russell Jeung admitted that the organization did not focus on claims of anti-Asian bias on universities such as at Harvard University, stating that, “a focus on elite universities doesn’t address the broad issues,” while also claiming, “Asian Americans are 20 times likelier to go to community colleges.” ¹⁵ In addition, Jeung admitted that Stop AAPI Hate, “provides no direct service” in assisting Asian-American communities and is instead focused on dismantling “structural institutional sources” of anti-Asian racism. ¹⁶

Founding Organizations

Stop AAPI Hate is the collective project of three separate organizations. The first is the AAPI Equity Alliance (formerly A3PCON), a race-focused civic engagement and policy advocacy organization in Los Angeles. A second sponsor is Chinese for Affirmative Action (CAA), a San Francisco-based immigrant rights and racial-advocacy organizations. CAA is primary fiscal sponsors of Stop AAPI Hate and processes all donations to the organization. ¹⁷ The final sponsor is the Asian American Studies Department at San Francisco State University.

People

Russell Jeung is one of the co-founders of Stop AAPY Hate, and serves as the organization’s CEO as of 2023. Jeung is also a professor of Asian American studies at San Francisco State University. ^{18 19}

Cynthia Choi is one of the co-founders of Stop AAPI Hate. She also works as the co-executive director of Chinese for Affirmative Action, the main funding organization and a founding partner of Stop AAPI Hate. ²⁰ Choi was previously a vice president at Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy (AAPIP), a left-of-center national membership organizations mobilizing philanthropic resources for AAPI communities. ²¹

Manjusha Kulkarni is one of the co-founders of Stop AAPI Hate. She also works as the executive director of AAPI Equity Alliance, a founder partner of Stop AAPI Hate. Kulkarni holds a position on the California Racial and Identity Profile Advisory Board, ²² a state agency created by law to “improve diversity and racial and identity sensitivity in law enforcement.” ²³

1. “Policy & Advocacy.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/policy-advocacy/.
2. “Data & Research.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/data-research/
3. “Report Hate.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/report-hate/.
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5. “Our Origins.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/our-origins/.
6. ^“Our Origins.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/our-origins/.
7.  Our Origins.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/our-origins/.
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10. “Campaigns.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/campaigns/.
11. “California is No Place for Hate.” No Place for Hate CA. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://noplaceforhateca.org/.
12. “The Blame Game: How Political Rhetoric Inflames Anti-Asian Scapegoating.” Stop AAPI Hate. October 2022. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Stop-AAPI-Hate-Scapegoating-Report.pdf.
13. ^[1] “The Blame Game: How Political Rhetoric Inflames Anti-Asian Scapegoating.” Stop AAPI Hate. October 2022. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Stop-AAPI-Hate-Scapegoating-Report.pdf.
14. “Two Years and Thousands of Voices: National Report (Through March 31, 20222). Stop AAPI Hate. July 2022. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/2022/07/20/year-2-report/.
15. Xu, Kenny. “Stop Stop AAPI Hate.” City Journal, Accessed September 12, 2023. https://www.city-journal.org/article/stop-stop-aapi-hate
16. Xu, Kenny. “Stop Stop AAPI Hate.” City Journal, Accessed September 12, 2023. https://www.city-journal.org/article/stop-stop-aapi-hate
17. “Donate.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 23, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/donate/
18. Xu, Kenny. “Stop Stop AAPI Hate.” City Journal, Accessed September 12, 2023. https://www.city-journal.org/article/stop-stop-aapi-hate
19. Hong, Cathy Park. “Manjusha P. Kulkarni, Russell Jeung and Cynthia Choi.” Time, September 15, 2021. https://time.com/collection/100-most-influential-people-2021/6096105/manjusha-kulkarni-russell-jeung-cynthia-choi/
20. “Our Team.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed June 23, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/our-team/.
21. “Cynthia Choi.” LinkedIn. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://www.linkedin.com/in/cynthia-choi-4246102b/
22. “Our Team.” Stop AAPI Hate. Accessed Jun 23, 2023. https://stopaapihate.org/our-team/
23. “Racial and Identity Profiling Advisory Board.” State of California Department of Justice. Accessed June 13, 2023. https://oag.ca.gov/ab953/board