Pramila Jayapal Says Republicans Put 'Target…on Our Backs' by Using 'Racist Terminology'

Rep. Pramila Jayapal says the rhetoric of the Trump administration has contributed to the climate of racism toward Asian Americans and created a lack of empathy among Republicans for their plight.

The Washington congresswoman's comments followed calls from Democrats for Rep. Chip Roy of Texas to resign after he invoked lynching during a House committee hearing on the rise in hate crimes against Asians.

Just two days after the murder of eight people in Georgia, including six Asian women, Roy spoke about rounding up bad guys and told the hearing: "There's old sayings in Texas about 'Find all the rope in Texas and get a tall oak tree.'"

Jayapal told CNN Roy's remarks were "stunning" and made a wider point about how the sentiments of the Trump administration were still affecting Republican views and had spilled over into public opinion.

The quote

Jayapal told New Day on Friday: "I think my Republican colleagues are so caught up in the racist terminology made popular, mainstream, by Donald Trump and his administration, that they are not able to see that compassion any more.

"They are not able to see the target that they are putting on our backs—on the backs of our elders, our children. They are just unwilling to see any of that."

Why it matters

The hearing of the House judiciary committee had been planned for weeks, but it took on added significance following the shootings in Georgia.

Asian American lawmakers and leaders told the hearing how violence against their communities had increased, with Grace Meng, a New York Democrat, saying: "We are in pain. And for the last year, we've been screaming out for help."

Meng was joined by experts and advocates who said the spike in anti-Asian bigotry had been fueled by Trump and his allies' regular references to COVID-19 as the "China virus," the "China plague" or "Kung flu".

Since the start of the pandemic a year ago, attacks against Asian Americans have risen. The group Stop AAPI Hate said it had received reports of 3,800 incidents ranging from verbal abuse to physical assault, adding that this was likely a fraction of the actual number.

Jayapal told CNN how she took issue with some GOP colleagues using the term "China virus" during a hearing, and said other Republicans had played down attacks on Asian Americans by comparing them to hate crimes against other races.

She said that because of the Trump administration some GOP members "are not able to see that compassion."

The counterpoint

It was not only Democrats who condemned Roy's comments. Maryland's Republican Governor Larry Hogan told CNN that the remarks were "shameful and disgusting and disgraceful."

Two Asian American Republican lawmakers from California, Reps. Young Kim and Michelle Steel, attended the House hearing. Kim expressed a view that may find further reach in the GOP when she said: "No American of any race or ethnic group is responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic," The Washington Post reported.

While Asian Americans overwhelmingly favored the Democrats during the 2020 election, support for the GOP did increase in some communities.

A survey by AAPI Data found that Trump gained support among Vietnamese American and Indian American voters last year, compared to 2016.

This suggests that with a more inclusive message, the GOP could improve its reputation with that proportion of the electorate, which is one of the fastest-growing racial or ethnic groups of voters according to Pew Research.

Newsweek has contacted the National Republican Congressional Committee and the group Asian American Republicans for comment.

The graphic below, provided by Statista, shows the rise in anti-Asian hate crime last year.