Learning how to stand up for others if you see someone experience harassment or hate can help save someone’s life. I have heard several firsthand stories about frightening, life-saving scenarios that have been de-escalated by strangers in the street or subway station. Being alert of your surroundings in public, not only for yourself but for those around you, is something that we critically need at this time. Taking the time in advance to think about what you would do in the scenario if you were to see something happen could allow you to be quicker to act if ever end up in this scenario where you could help intervene.
As part of my series about “individuals and organizations making an important social impact”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Michelle Tran, Co-Founder, Soar Over Hate.
Michelle Tran is a medical student in in NYC and the co-founder of Soar Over Hate. The organization Combats anti-Asian hate and xenophobia by equipping Asian Americans with personal safety devices, need-based scholarships, and culturally competent therapy. She was a part of last year’s women of worth honoree class.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
As COVID-19 raged throughout the world, Michelle, a medical student in New York City (NYC), noticed a second pandemic arising around her: a pandemic of anti-Asian racism and violence. Hate incidents across the country quickly escalated from racial slurs to lethal shovings. Asian elders who reminded Michelle of her grandparents were viciously attacked around her favorite neighborhoods of NYC. On the way to hospital, Michelle’s medical colleagues were violently targeted and blamed for a virus they were helping treat. Devastated by this escalation of hate and discrimination, Michelle was inspired to act. She worked with her youth mentee, Tiffany Yuen, to launch Soar Over Hate, an initiative to combat anti-Asian hate and equip vulnerable Asian American Pacific Islanders (AAPI) with self-defense materials, culturally-competent therapy, and other resources.
Can you describe how you or your organization is making a significant social impact?
Through Soar Above Hate, Michelle combats anti-Asian hate xenophobia by equipping Asian Americans with personal safety devices, need-based scholarships, and culturally competent therapy. Soar Over Hate has now distributed over 24,000 safety alarms, whistles, and pepper spray to Asian Americans in New York and California. They prioritized those most vulnerable, such as low-income folks, essential workers, and elderly. Soar Over Hate also hosted multiple community events, including two popular Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Care Fairs in NYC and San Francisco. These events offered free self-defense classes and materials, healthcare screening, puppy therapy, meditation, healing circles, and more. Beyond self-defense materials, Soar Over Hate seeks to empower the next generation of AAPI leaders with a college scholarship fund and promote healing from racial trauma through free therapy for victims of anti-Asian hate.
Are there three things the community/society/politicians can do to help you address the root of the problem you are trying to solve?
Learning how to stand up for others if you see someone experience harassment or hate can help save someone’s life. I have heard several firsthand stories about frightening, life-saving scenarios that have been de-escalated by strangers in the street or subway station. Being alert of your surroundings in public, not only for yourself but for those around you, is something that we critically need at this time. Taking the time in advance to think about what you would do in the scenario if you were to see something happen could allow you to be quicker to act if ever end up in this scenario where you could help intervene.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company or organization?
answer #1
One very recent impactful connection for us that continues to fuel us to work harder at our mission at protecting folks was the murder of Guiying Ma. On Thanksgiving weekend in 2021, Guiying Ma (61 y/o Chinese woman) was minding her own business, sweeping the sidewalk in Jackson Heights in Queens, NYC when she was violently attacked and struck in the head by a man who she had never met before. To the horror of her family, she had severe head injuries and was left in a coma. Since hearing of her event, we reached out to her family and friends and had been helping her husband process this event with therapy through our Heal from Hate fund. One of our volunteers mailed his old iPad so that her husband could access the therapy sessions via iPad. A few months later, she woke up briefly from her coma to talk to her husband and we were so hopeful that she was going to get better. Unfortunately, she passed on February 22nd, due to complications from her injury, at a hospital that I will soon rotate in as a medical student. After her passing, I was so angry. Her death marked the fourth death due to anti-Asian violence in NYC in the span of 2 months, but people around me seemed to not know of her story or what happened. Since her death, I have been thinking a great deal about how the system failed her and her family, and how Soar Over Hate can help bring light and a helping hand to those affected by these injustices.
answer #2
We have been able to connect with many victims of anti-Asian hate incidents, violent and non-violent, that have continued to propel our organization to keep on doing the work to support the community. These events have been tremendously sad and challenging, but we want to serve as a beacon of hope for the community and a reminder that there are so many people that care and want to support one another. Our AAPI Care Fairs in NYC and SF are events centered around joy and healing that I will remember for the rest of my lifetime. Despite all the horrible attacks and immense sadness weighing on our shoulders, we were able to unite as a community in May 2021 in Manhattan’s Chinatown and June 2021 in SF’s Chinatown with AAPI folks of various ages, ethnicities, and cultural backgrounds. In addition to offering essential services (personal safety equipment, self defense classes, and healthcare screening) we were able to celebrate our shared joys of being Asian through live music and puppy therapy. I will never forget seeing these elderly women with stoic faces break out into uncontrollable laughter with a cute puppy on their lap. I was so happy we were able to contribute to such a joyous event in a time of great despair and anxiety in the community.
You are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
I think the majority of the issues in the world could be solved by empathy. It is all too easy for us to keep our heads down, stick to our own bubbles, and not really notice those around us. If I could inspire a movement, where everyone could have a respectful and open conversation once a week with someone from a different backgrounds in terms of age, race, ethnicity, gender identity, geographical location, religion, educational background, socioeconomic status, and language, I really believe the world would be a much more kind place.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
You can follow the impact of Soar Over Hate on Instagram (@SoarOverHate), Facebook (SoarOverHate), and Twitter (@SoarOverHate).
This was very meaningful, thank you so much. We wish you only continued success in your mission.
Social Impact Heroes: Why & How Michelle Tran of Soar Over Hate Is Helping To Change Our World was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.