Several recent attacks have gone unpunished as hate crimes, igniting anger and demonstrations among Asian-Americans.
March 18, 2021
A Chinese man was walking home near Manhattan's Chinatown neighborhood on a cold evening last month when a stranger unexpectedly came up behind him and stabbed a knife into his back. The stabbing was shocking to many Asian-Americans, but not unexpected. It was generally recognized as the most recent instance of racially motivated violence against Asians during the pandemic.
According to investigators, the suspect, a 23-year-old Yemeni man, had not spoken to the victim prior to the attack. Prosecutors concluded that there was insufficient proof to suggest a racial motive. While the perpetrator was charged with attempted murder, it was not a hate crime. Asian-American leaders in New York City were outraged by the declaration. Many of them gathered outside the Manhattan district attorney's office to demand that the stabbing be investigated as a hate crime. They were fed up with the government ignoring what they saw as racial assaults.
Anti-Asian hate crimes rose by more than 12% between 2014 and 2019, according to the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism. Despite the fact that this isn't a huge problem in our culture, Dianne Stancato, CEO of the YWCA Mohawk Valley, believes it's still important to recognise and denounce what's going on.
Eight people were killed in a mass shooting in Atlanta less than two weeks ago, six of whom were Asian women.
“A criminal offence against an individual or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender's bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity”
According to the FBI. Staccato claims that the rise in anti-Asian crimes is due to a variety of factors. Volunteers patrol Asian-American neighborhoods as hate crimes rise. Here’s 5 ways they are dealing with the situation volunteers patrol a Chinese neighborhood in New York, according to an AFP survey, wearing bright protective vests and carrying walkie-talkies to shield Asian Americans from a surge of pandemic-era violence following deadly mass shootings at Asian-owned spas in Atlanta. Men and women from different occupations walk the streets of Chinatown in Flushing, Queens every night in groups of eight to reassure terrified people and assist in the capture of any would-be assailants. The PSP, which began its walkabouts on Monday, is similar to other civil patrol teams that have organized in San Francisco and Oakland in response to an uptick in violence against Asian Americans following the outbreak
Via social media and word of mouth, Vice President Kenny Li quickly enlisted over 240 volunteers, including waiters, office staff, and lawyers. They use a WhatsApp group and Facebook to organize their activities. The vast majority have no prior self-defense experience and only wish to assist others in their spare time.
Each volunteer is given a stack of Chinese-language leaflets describing their work, which they distribute on their rounds, as well as whistles in case they need to attract the attention of police officers who have increased patrols in Chinese communities. Residents are advised to call 911 if they encounter abuse, even if they do not speak English, so the police may intervene.
According to a new report by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, anti-Asian hate crimes nearly tripled from 49 to 122 in 16 major cities last year, despite overall hate crime dropping 7%. Activists argue that former President Donald Trump and his political allies fueled the attacks by referring to Covid-19 as the "Chinese virus" and "China plague," and that some of New York's mayoral candidates used the word "China plague."
The government and citizens are trying their level best to curb this issue . However , the problem is much more deep rooted and their needs to be a change in mindset to stop this issue once and for all.
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