The Army announced charges against eight soldiers in connection with the suicide of a Chinese-American private, Danny Chen. But now, many in the Asian community are saying the Army has a bigger problem with racism in general.The 19-year-old soldier died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. This case echoes the suicide of 21-year-old Lance Corporal Harry Lew in April, another Asian-American who reportedly shot himself while serving with the Marines in Afghanistan. Wednesday, the U.S. army announced charges against eight soldiers ranging from negligent homicide to assault and dereliction of duty in connection with Chen’s death.
The Army and Chen’s family say Chen was bullied to the point where he felt suicide was his only choice. Choi said in Army units, commanders sometimes sweep serious incidents under the rug to pretend that there is no racism in the military. He said this is an epidemic and that the military can’t blame just these eight soldiers who are facing charges.
I’m glad to see that they’re actually pressing charges, but we’ll just have to see what comes of it. I hope they do use this as an opportunity to tackle the overall issue. *shrug* We’ll see.
(via dopegirlfresh)
