The following is adapted from a speech delivered by Hugh Bussell, Chairman, Alameda County Republican Party, at Dublin, California, on March 28th, 2021, at the event, "Stop Asian Hate! Stop Anti-Asian Violence! Tri-Valley Unites!

Standing With, and Standing Against

Today I am here representing the Alameda County Republican Party to show you that we are Standing With you, our Asian American Pacific Islander community, and standing against hate.

I have personally felt connected with your community, by marriage, as my wife is third generation Chinese. My three children are mixed race. And I have been painfully aware of the painful incidents and struggles facing this community.

From the story of my father-in-law as a boy going to the public pool in Berkeley, ready to pay to enjoy the pool on a hot summer day. The person at the gate asked to see his health card, and sent my father-in-law home when he couldn’t produce it. Of course there was no such requirement.

I was horrified when I heard of the brutal beating death of Vincent Chin in 1982, all because two men in the auto industry thought he was Japanese.  Neither man ever served a day in prison.

And of course, we are all appalled at the brutal attacks on elderly Asians here in the Bay Area.

So we stand with you in support, we stand with you in our shock and outrage, and we stand with you to take action.

But today we also stand against. We stand against hate. We stand against attacks, either verbal or physical against anyone based on the community they belong to.

We stand against the perpetrators of these crimes. We stand against anyone who will not enforce the full weight of the law in prosecuting these criminals. And we stand against a system that all too often releases violent people before they have served their time.

So, we stand with you, and we stand against hate.

Who here stands with the Asian American Pacific Islander Community? Shout it out.  We Stand with you! (crowd repeats) We Stand With You! ...