Hands against hate
JANEL FOO WANTED TO AMPLIFY AAPI VOICES. MANY ARTISTS RESPONDED
WITH THE RECENT riseofhatecrimes against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders during the COVID-19 pandemic, Los Angeles-based stained-glass artist Janel Foo wanted to do something to help.
“I can tell you that I’ve never been more self-conscious about being Asian,” said Foo, who is Chinese American and has worried about the safety of her parents.
So Foo decided to auction off one of her stained-glass suncatchers on Instagram and donate the funds to Stop AAPI Hate, a San Francisco-based coalition that addresses anti-Asian hate and harassment.
Her idea escalated from there. “I thought it would be cool to get my Asian American and Pacific Islander friends involved,” she said. “Part of it was raising awareness about rising Asian hate, but I also wanted to amplify AAPI voices in our community.”
Since creating the Create to Stop Hate Instagram account, Foo has auctioned off more than 70 items from Asian American artists including jewelry, ceramics, yarnwrapped horseshoes, illustrations and fiber wall hangings.
The auction has collected more than $12,000, and Foo will continue this week with donations from clothing label Black Crane, San Francisco-based photographer Michael Jang and Los Angeles celebrity photographer Peter Yang.
“It has been so rewarding and fulfilling,” Foo said. “Yes, it’s time-consuming, and I’ve been ignoring my stainedglass orders, but I feel like it is important.”
Inspired by Foo, we’ve compiled a list of Los Angelesbased Asian American and Pacific Islander creatives. This list is not meant to be definitive but a way to highlight some of the AAPI community in Los Angeles. You can find more online at latimes.com/style.