Jordan Clarkson Decries Anti-Asian Vandalism On Filipino Food Truck

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – Jordan Clarkson took to Twitter to share the pain he felt after seeing a Filipino food truck vandalized with anti-Asian slurs in Utah over the weekend.

The Jazz guard is the only player of Filipino descent in the NBA, a claim he holds onto proudly.

“It hurt me deeply to see that Salt Lake’s @YumYumAsian food truck was recently vandalized – I know the pain that hateful language and racism causes,” Clarkson tweeted. “With help from @identityGraphix we’ll be able to restore the truck and hopefully lift Ben and his family’s spirit!! #StopAsianHate”

I stand in solidarity with Utah’s Filipino community – love is more powerful than hate! #utahfilipino #StopAAPIHate #stopasianhate

— Jordan Clarkson (@JordanClarksons) June 9, 2021

After parking the truck in Layton, Utah on Saturday night, the Yum Yum owners awoken to the realization that they and their mobile business had been the target of discrimination.

Now, working with Identity Graphx, a Salt Lake City company that specializes in vinyl decals and car wraps, Clarkson said he’s working to get the truck restored to its original condition.

Clarkson’s grandmother was born in Manila where the Sixth Man of the Year favorite has become a national hero.

The Jazz guard, who identifies as Filipino-American, is the only current NBA player with Filipino heritage and played for the national team at the 2018 Asian Games.

🙏🏽 https://t.co/p8fg3LCJjn

— Jordan Clarkson (@JordanClarksons) June 9, 2021

Last month, Clarkson became the first  Asian-American to win the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award after averaging 18.4 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.5 assists for the Jazz, and helping lead the team to the best record in the NBA for the first time in franchise history.

Anti-Asian discrimination has skyrocketed in the United States over the last year during the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to NBC Los Angeles, the latest statistics from Stop AAPI Hate showed that self-reported incidents of racism and hate crimes jumped from a cumulative 3,795 between March 2020 and February 2021 to 6,603 within just one month in March 2021.