As advocates across the country demand more be done to protect the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community from ongoing hate and violence, one state has stepped up. California lawmakers introduced two bills Thursday that will address the harassment and violence women and other vulnerable populations face. The proposed legislation follows an alarming increase in hate crimes against the AAPI community across the nation, but they’re happening at an even more alarming rate in California state.
California remains one of the states with one of the highest increases in hate crimes reported from 2020 to 2021. According to Stop AAPI Hate, 40% of hate crimes reported to the organization have occurred in California, home to the country’s largest AAPI population. Two-thirds of these were reported by women, with a majority of them taking place in public spaces or businesses.
According to NBC News, the proposed legislation is one of the first pieces of legislation in the country that focuses on street discrimination and harassment as a public health issue, rather than a criminal one. Introduced by Sen. Dave Min and Assembly members Mia Bonta and Dr. Akilah Weber, the bill was created in an effort to protect women and other vulnerable groups of riders on transit systems.
“From the first mile to the last, no Californian should feel unsafe traveling to work, to school, or anywhere,” Min said in a statement. “This bill will help restore confidence in the safety of public transportation so that everyone — especially women and minorities — can ride from one place to the next without fear.”
Alongside requiring the state’s 10 largest transit districts to study the types of harassment that commuters experience in order to develop a data-driven safety plan, the legislation will direct the California Department of Public Health to conduct a multiyear public education campaign to raise awareness about street harassment.
“Everyone has a right to move freely and have a sense of peace while in public spaces, streets and sidewalks,” Weber said in a statement. “The reality is street harassment against women and vulnerable communities is all too common and is rarely addressed by current laws.”
While the latest data on hate crimes against Asian Americans released by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism found that anti-Asian hate crimes rose by 339% in 2021 compared with 2020 across the country, data compiled by the San Francisco police department found that hate crimes against the AAPI community went up 567% from the previous year. The city alone saw an increase from nine victims to 60 reported between 2020 to 2021.
Additionally, multiple crimes in the Bay Area have been attributed to the same people. In one pattern of crimes, six men were arrested after committing dozens of robberies, burglaries, and thefts. The suspects were charged in connection with more than 70 cases that occurred between October 2020 and this September, all of which targeted Asian females, Daily Kos reported.
Calls for change and action to be taken against the rise in Asian American hate crimes follows multiple incidents reported since the start of the pandemic. Most recently, a Korean American woman named Christina Yuna Lee was killed by a homeless man after being stabbed more than 40 times in her New York City apartment building, Daily Kos reported. The horrific incident follows the death of Michelle Alyssa, an Asian woman who was shoved in front of a subway train in New York’s Times Square.
“Unfortunately what our data shows is that many others in our community have experienced something very similar,” said Manjusha Kulkarni, co-founder of the national reporting center Stop AAPI Hate, which sponsored both bills.
Stop AAPI Hate is also sponsoring a third bill that has yet to be introduced. According to NBC News, that bill will focus on large businesses, a space known to be connected to an influx of anti-Asian bias incidents. According to data from Stop AAPI Hate, nearly a third of incidents recorded since the beginning of the pandemic took place at retailers, grocery stores, or restaurants.
Bill supporters hope the bill will set a precedent and encourage other states to pass similar legislation. At this time only one national bill exists regarding anti-Asian hate crimes, which was signed by Biden in May 2021. However, that bill focuses on policing and investigative tactics when crimes are reported rather than on preventative measures and safety.
No one should have to fear completing their day to day activities. The AAPI community needs our support now more than ever, whether it be checking in on our family and friends, spreading awareness of COVID-19 misconceptions, or contacting members of Congress to do more against anti-Asian hate. Check out this guide on resources and ways to support the AAPI community and our Asian friends. Hate is the real virus, and we must end it.
