LOS ANGELES, March 21 (Xinhua) -- Educational shortcomings allow harmful stereotypes about Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) to proliferate and drive anti-AAPI sentiment in the United States, said New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy and Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker in a recent opinion article published by CNN.

       Falsely blamed for the global spread of COVID-19, the AAPI community has been subjected to violent attacks over and over since the start of the pandemic, said the governors in the article titled "Our educational shortcomings drive anti-AAPI sentiment," which was posted on CNN website on Friday, noting that there has been a 339 percent increase in anti-AAPI hate crimes nationwide in the last year alone.

       "This is not a novel problem but rather the most recent chapter in a long history of bias and discrimination against AAPIs in the US -- beginning with the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 and continuing to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II and, in recent years, the vitriol experienced by Muslim and South Asian Americans following the 9/11 attacks," said Murphy and Pritzker.

       "Various studies have found that most American history lessons and textbooks fail to illuminate the diversity of AAPI experiences and identities -- often reinforcing the perception of AAPIs as foreigners or outsiders, and suggesting AAPI history is somehow distinct and separate from American history," said the two governors.

       "This is a disservice to our young people. AAPI history is American history. Without proper representation in the curriculum they're taught, AAPI students are made to feel unseen and undervalued in their own country, while students from other racial backgrounds are not adequately exposed to the diversity of the AAPI community and its long history in America," they added.

       Murphy and Pritzker pointed out that "no matter the challenges, our education system can and must curb these drivers of hate" and "change needs to happen at scale so that throughout our nation's education system the stories of AAPIs are told accurately and comprehensively."

       "Education is one of the most powerful antidotes we have for combating hate, and those of us who have the power to invest in it must do so swiftly," the two governors concluded, adding that "this is our chance to stop hate now and to help build more inclusive and compassionate communities for the generations to come."