#VeryAsian movement spreads north to Toronto with businesses embracing identity

A hashtag started by a Korean-American television anchor after she shared a racist voicemail message has sparked a movement that is now being embraced by businesses in Toronto, who say they are proudly wearing their Asian heritage on their sleeve.

Michelle Li shared the message on her social media accounts with the hashtag #VeryAsian, in which a caller said her comments on-air about enjoying dumpling soup on New Years were "not inappropriate" and complained she was being "very Asian." The caller also said for Li to "keep her Korean" to herself.

"It's 2022. I can't believe someone would take the time out of their day to call in a news anchor to say keep your business to yourself," said Brian Tran, one of the co-founders of La La Bakeshop, a Vietnamese bakery in Toronto.

"To me, that's so backward."

Tran is one of many business owners who are now branding themselves with the viral hashtag #VeryAsian — proudly advertising their Asian culture.

The #VeryAsian movement comes after a reported spike in anti-Asian racism brought on by the pandemic. Toronto police statistics show hate crimes rose 51 per cent in 2020 over the previous year and only Jewish and Black people were targeted more often than Asians. It's also happening nearly one year after the Atlanta spa shootings that left eight dead — mostly Asian women. While many in Toronto are embracing the new hashtag movement, they say more still needs to be done to address anti-Asian hate.

In the window of Tran's Annex bakery now hangs a sign that says "We are a #VeryAsian bakery" and explains that it uses ingredients like durian, salted egg yolk and pork floss.

Tran said they often see customers walk in, then walk out, saying they thought it was a "normal" bakery. His goal, he said, is to challenge the idea of what a "normal" bakery looks like.

"I decided to print off a sign that said, 'Hey, we are a #VeryAsian bakery. You are welcome to come in and ask us questions. Maybe try something out. No pressure,'" said Tran.

"I put the sign up almost as a very small act of defiance. I didn't think anything would come of it. But we've had such a warm outpouring of support from the community right here in Toronto."

That support, according to Tran, has come not just from those in the Vietnamese community in Toronto, but also from Chinese Canadians, Korean Canadians and Filipino Canadians.

"I've lived in my skin all my life. I feel like this is the time to speak up and say, 'I'm proud of who I am. I'm proud of what my parents came from. I'm proud of what my people bring to this country,'" said Tran.

"So that's why it was really important, especially leading up to Lunar New Year, for us to say we are a very Asian bakery. We're not going anywhere."

In recent years, Toronto-based food blogger Phuong Tran has been focused on supporting Asian small businesses. She says it was in response to the rise of anti-Asian sentiment during the pandemic after the novel coronavirus was discovered in Wuhan, China.