September was East & South East Asian Heritage Month! This was the UK’s second #ESEAHM and it gave us a chance to celebrate, acknowledge and learn about the incredible ways in which East & South East Asian (ESEA) communities have helped to shape the UK. #ESEAHM22

We hope you have enjoyed taking part in the month-long celebration of ESEA heritage, culture and history. We’d like to take a moment to acknowledge the origins of ESEA heritage month. Did you know that ESEA Heritage Month came from a grassroots movement?

The outbreak of COVID-19 saw a dramatic increase in racist incidents directed towards ESEA communities in the UK. ESEA Heritage month came out of the period of increased activism and awareness of racism and hate violence. Many groups and individuals from various different ESEA backgrounds came together to form Britain’s East and South East Asian Network (besea.n) and launched the first ESEA Heritage Month last year, in September 2021.

Mai-Anh Peterson, co-founder of besea.n said: “We launched ESEA Heritage Month last year in response to the 179% increase in hate crimes towards ESEA people in London at the start of the pandemic*, a trend that has been reflected in other parts of the country. Our aim was to provide a safe space to celebrate and acknowledge the contributions of ESEA people in the UK, as well as bringing joy to the community.”

So while #ESEAHM is a time of celebration, it is also a time for opening up to discuss difficult topics, honouring forgotten history, and solving the real issues being faced by ESEA communities in the UK today. 

The spike in hate crimes and incidents also highlighted a gap in support and reporting services for ESEA communities. ESEA community-led movements formed and grew, aimed at both preventing racism faced by ESEA communities and demanding better support for victims.

Community groups called for urgent culturally competent services during covid – including an earlier version of On Your Side. Groups like EVR were very vocal in calling for the need for an ESEA-specific hate helpline. In March 2021, following the first national conference on hate crime faced by ESEA communities, 28 ESEA-led organisations joined Protection Approaches, a hate crime prevention charity, in calling for a new hate crime support and reporting service specifically for ESEA communities.(link) All this work, in part, led to the funding from DLUHC for On Your Side!

***

ESEA Heritage Month is still facing a lack of recognition. besea.n are on a mission to make ESEA Heritage Month a household name. If you’d like to help them gain recognition by the UK Government Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport and make this an annual observance please sign their petition.