Why Is #StopAsianHate Trending?
Person holding a #StopAsianHate sign in front of a government building.
Why is #StopAsianHate trending all of a sudden? Among other acts of violence against the AAPI community, the horrific Atlanta area shootings have thrust the issue of growing anti-Asian and anti-Asian American sentiment into the public spotlight, creating strong momentum for opposition and a national cry for change.
Momentum For #StopAsianHate
The MFactor for #StopAsianHate surged to 68 at the end of March 2021, an all-time high fueled by the Atlanta tragedy. The sudden rise of #StopAsianHate comes after a year of increasing anti-Asian American rhetoric, which started along with the pandemic as China was blamed for COVID-19.
MFactor for #StopAsianHate / Stop Asian Hate. MFactor is a proprietary tool that measures cultural momentum through topic modeling and sentiment analysis.
Momentum for “violence against Asian Americans” initially spiked to an MFactor of 45 in early March 2020, but discussion and debate about violence against Asian-Americans started to subside until the Atlanta shootings. This high-profile incident, caused another spike in momentum, to a peak MFactor of 68 and rising.
This recent surge in momentum was also a response to new data revealing the number of anti-Asian American hate incidents. Over the past year, in the United States saw rates greater than previously reported, with a disproportionate number of attacks targeting women.
PR Departments Have Learned From BLM
Brands and businesses learned from the Black Lives Matter movement in June 2020 that, saying nothing can be a risky PR strategy, and this has led to increasing support for the #StopAsianHate movement. Brands like Estée Lauder Companies, Airbnb, Netflix, The NBA, and Nike have shown support by amplifying voices within the AAPI community and committing to new diversity practices and action.
Summary: Why Is #StopAsianHate Trending
Why is #StopAsianHate trending? Because is America had enough. People are calling for an end to Asian and Asian-American discrimination and hate crimes.