Searches for Asian-owned coffee shops surged 652% in February
Yelp has added a new search filter to help users find Asian-owned businesses and restaurants.
Partnering with nonprofit AAPI organisation Gold House, Yelp is creating a direct bridge between its users and its Asian-owned businesses.
The opt-in searchable feature allows users to filter ‘Asian-owned’ businesses and restaurants. Last year, Yelp offered a similar feature for Black-owned businesses.
Searches for Asian-owned businesses surged 130% in February compared to the year prior amid the Coronavirus pandemic. Additionally, searches for Asian-owned coffee shops rose 652% over the same period.
“Asian American and Pacific Islander crimes haven’t stopped — alarmingly, they’ve come even closer to home, present in our communities from Chinatowns to Filipinotowns,” Mikkoh Chen and Megan Ruan, program directors at Gold House, said in a statement.
Asian-owned restaurants and businesses saw a 26% decline from February to April 2020, which is higher than the industry average of 22%. Chinese restaurants had a closure rate of 60% as of 9 April.
“We hope Yelp’s new business attribute for AAPI business owners helps drive safe foot traffic into each enclave, benefits local communities economically, and provides community-driven oversight and action into the safety of our neighbors and elders for years to come,” Chen and Ruan said.
There has been a surge in attacks on Asian Americans across the country, including an Asian woman who was hit in the face in Philadelphia.
In California, Vietnamese family was tied up in their own home by robbers who stole their entire life savings in Oakland, California.
Also in California, an elderly Asian American woman was kicked in the face by a suspect who was on parole for fatally stabbing his mother.
Meanwhile, a Japanese American man was randomly punched in the face whilst walking in Washington D.C.
In San Francisco, a 19-year-old Asian hate crime victim was shot in the eye.
Also in San Francisco, an Asian woman was attacked and dragged by a getaway car.
Additionally, a 13-year-old boy was racially attacked in Flushing.
In LA, a 28-year-old Asian mother died in a fatal shooting in Compton.
Most recently, an Asian American mother was stabbed to death by a homeless woman in Riverside.