This article contains references to anti-Asian racism.
Two undergraduate students said they experienced a racist encounter on campus last month with a man who claimed to be a master’s student at UBC, following a string of anti-Asian hate incidents at UBC and in the province at large.
Llana Arreza, an incoming fifth-year biology student, detailed her experience in an email to The Ubyssey, the AMS, the UBC President’s Office and the Equity and Inclusion Office (EIO). She and three friends, two of whom are visible members of the Asian Pacific-Islander community, encountered a white man and his friend while standing in line at The Gallery in the Nest on the night of June 4.
Arreza said that upon hearing that she and her friends were in the faculty of science, the man said, “It’s probably because you’re Asian,” which caused visible discomfort to everyone in the conversation.
Arreza proceeded to leave the premises because she felt uncomfortable, but she said that the man continued to demean her friends with racial stereotypes.
“As a woman of colour who has had to overcome a plethora of adversities for my academic achievements ... this individual had no place in belittling my place on this campus with that comment,” Arreza wrote in the email.
“While this man's statement was short and seemingly harmless, it completely demeaned my work ethic, drive, intelligence, and made me question my place at this university.”
Arreza told The Ubyssey in an interview that she felt “more so shocked and angry rather than sad” after the incident.
“I was just so disappointed that someone who claimed to be educated could say such stupid and ignorant things to me,” she said.
Vanessa Yee, one of Arreza’s friends who was with her during the initial encounter, experienced further harassment after Arreza left. She said that the man approached her and her friend again later in the Nest and, at one point in the conversation, pulled back his eyes mockingly, laughing off her immediate objection.
Yee said that he came back once again to say “Kon[n]ichiwa” to her and her friend, refusing to correct himself after she had made it clear that neither of them were Japanese. Arreza says that the man dismissed this and said that they were Chinese, which is the same thing.
Yee tracked down the man on social media and reached out to him after the incident.
“It just didn’t sit right with me to let him think that that was okay,” Yee said. When she asked for an apology, the man hit on her and eventually stopped replying.
UBC and the AMS respond
When Yee reported this incident to the EIO, she said the office wasn’t able to find the man’s name in the UBC database. This led her to believe that he had lied about his identity and did not actually attend any master’s program at UBC.
In a statement to The Ubyssey, Associate Vice-President, Equity & Inclusion Sara-Jane Finlay said she couldn’t comment on the specific incident due to privacy reasons.
Finlay highlighted UBC’s discrimination policy but emphasized that it only applies to students, staff and faculty.
“In terms of how the university protects students from harassment on campus from non-students, faculty or staff, it’s important to note the university’s common areas [are] generally accessible to the public, meaning members of the public can and do come to the campus for a wide variety of reasons. It is simply impossible for UBC to ensure all visitors to our campus embody our community standards,” Finlay said.
Finlay encouraged anyone who “believes they have been the victim of a hate crime to contact 911 immediately and inform Campus Security.”
Despite this, Yee expressed that she felt as if students are not given enough resources to deal with incidents like these. She said that she knew she could call UBC Security, but it didn’t come to mind when she was experiencing the incident and she didn’t know what number to call.
Yee also wished that someone would have intervened or backed her up when she defended herself.
In an interview with The Ubyssey, AMS President Cole Evans said that “the AMS unequivocally condemns any incidences of harassment, or discrimination that occur at UBC and especially on AMS premises.”
Evans said that the AMS has policies in place that are designed to address incidents of discrimination and harassment and if a student files a complaint under this policy, then it could be addressed by AMS Council if needed.
In relation to this specific incident, Evans said the EIO was working with Arreza and the AMS is in touch with the VP Students office about it.
Arreza concurred that UBC should take more action on the issue of anti-Asian racism. She said she was glad to see the university host a National Forum on Anti-Asian Racism but still wishes to see more concrete steps being taken to protect students.
“[UBC] did the most they could in this situation, but I do hope that in the future [they] try to speak up about these issues,” Arreza said.
This article has been updated. A previous version had spelled Llana Arreza’s last name as “Areza.”