Anti-Asian Hate Crime Bill signed into law

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President Biden signs the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act.

President Biden signed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act into law on Thursday, fulfilling a pledge he made when the bill was first introduced in Congress during the early stages of his administration.

"I believe with every fiber of my being that there are simple core values and beliefs that should bring us together as Americans. One of them is standing together against hate, against racism — the ugly poison that has long haunted and plagued our nation," said Biden before the signing.

Stop AAPI Hate, a community-based organization, began collecting incidents of hate in March 2020 when the nation began implementing safety measures. In the year ending March 2021, the agency documented 6,603 hate incidents against AAPI.

The law will, among other initiatives, direct the Justice Department to more speedily review pandemic-related hate crimes and expand data collection resources for tracking such crimes.

The new law would also direct the departments of Justice and Health and Human Services to work with community-based organizations to issue guidance raising awareness of hate crimes during the pandemic, and would require the US Attorney General to issue guidance to work with state and local law enforcement agencies to establish online reporting of them.


Democrats and AAPI partially attribute the rise in hate acts to Donald Trump,   when talking about the coronavirus, used terms such as the "China virus," "Wuhan Flu" or "Kung Flu" and blaming China for the United State's economic woes.

The bill, known in the AAPI community as the Anti-Asian Hate Crimes Bill, was authored by Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-HI, and Rep. Grace Meng, D-NY, in response to the surge of racist hate attacks against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

In a rare display of bipartisanship, the House of Representatives on Tuesday gave final passage to the bill with a 364-62 vote after the Senate passed the bill last month, 94-1.

“This violence, it did not come from nowhere and none of it is new,” said Vice President Kamala Harris, who introduced Biden.

“But after the president signs this bill today, we will not be done. Here’s the truth. Racism exists in America, xenophobia exists in America, antisemitism, Islamaphobia, homophobia, transphobia, it all exists. And so the work to address injustice wherever it exists remains the work ahead,” she added.

Stop AAPI Hate praised the new law but wants fine-tuning to divert more funding for community groups addressing root causes of the hate, such as "systemic racism and oppression."

"We are encouraged that the federal government has listened to the advice of community-based organizations and has committed to partnering with them further. To see additional change, we need legislation that addresses the root causes of systemic racism and oppression.

“Of all the good that the law can do, we have to change our hearts,” Biden said in his emotional speech. “We have to change the hearts of the American people. I mean this from the bottom of my heart. Hate can be given no safe harbor in America.”

With a rising voice, Biden continued, "Every time we’re silent, every time we let hate flourish, you make a lie of who we are as a nation."

President poised to sign bill to fight anti-Asian American hate

SCREEN CAPTURE / C-SPAN

The U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly, 364-62, to pass the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act Tuesday. 

The bill will help to address the alarming surge in anti-Asian violence that has occurred throughout the COVID-19 pandemic by improving hate crime tracking and reporting and providing resources to victims of hate crimes. 

“House passage of the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act on a strong bipartisan vote today sends a powerful, unified message that the United States Congress stands in solidarity with the AAPI community as we confront this epidemic of intolerance and hate,” said Sen. Mazie Hirono, who sponsored the bill in the Senate.

President Biden said that he would sign the bill into law. When the Senate passed the bill 94-1 in April, Biden said, "This critical legislation will bring our nation one step closer to achieving justice and equality for Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities.

"I look forward ... to signing this important legislation into law," said Biden.

The bill would improve the tracking hate crime tracking and reporting and providing resources to victims of hate crimes. The act also instructs the Justice Department to create a review process that expedites the processing of anti-Asian hate crimes related to COVID-19, designating an officer "whose responsibility during the applicable period shall be to facilitate the expedited review of hate crimes."

The bill, introduced by Senator Mazie Hirono, D-HI, and Rep. Grace Meng, NY-06, received bipartisan support but all the nay votes came from Republicans.

“I am truly heartened to see so many of my colleagues stand against this bigotry and discrimination," said Rep. Judy Chu, D-CA, and chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus. 

"Those of Asian descent have been blamed and scapegoated for the outbreak of COVID-19, and as a result Asian Americans have been beaten, slashed, spat on and even killed," she said. "The Asian American community is exhausted from being forced to endure this ongoing racism and prejudice. Asian Americans are tired of living in fear, and being frightened about their kids or elderly parents going outside."

"I commend my colleagues in the House for taking action to combat the despicable and sickening acts hate and violence against Asian Americans, and for having the Asian American community’s back as we fight this xenophobia and racist attacks.,” said co-author Rep. Grace Meng, D-NY.

Anti-Asian hate crimes bill heads to the House after overwhelming approval in the U.S. Senate

Senator Mazie Hirono, left, and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer at a press conference prior
to the Senate's vote on the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act.

The overwhelming passage of the hate crime bill that seeks protections in the U.S. Senate sets the stage for the House of Representatives and President Biden to take the final steps to turn it into law during May, AAPI Heritage Month.

The measure, passed in the Senate Thursday by a near-unanimous vote, 94-1, would direct a US Justice Department review of hate crimes and provide support for local law enforcement responding to violent incidents.

Advocates for Asian Americans link this past year's rise in hate incidents against AAPIs to the racist rhetoric of Donald Trump and his GOP supporters who heaped the blame on the coronavirus pandemic to China.

The attacks are “a predictable and foreseeable consequence” of racist and inflammatory language that has been used against Asians during the pandemic, including slurs used by Trump, said Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-HI, who introduced the bill in the Senate.

“Today’s historic, bipartisan vote on the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act sends a powerful message of solidarity to the AAPI community—that the United States Senate rejects anti-Asian hate. Now, I urge the House to swiftly pass this legislation so the bill can go to President Biden to sign into law,” Hirono said.

The lone "nay" vote was cast by Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley. The conservative lawmaker who raised his fist in support of the Jan. 6 insurrectionists that stormed the Capitol, said he opposed the bill because of the possibility of infringing on free speech.

President Joe Biden praised the bill's passage in the Senate, saying: "For more than a year, far too many Asian Americans have woken up each morning increasingly fearful for their safety and the safety of their loved ones, They have been scapegoated, harassed, and assaulted; some have even been killed. It has been over a year of living in fear for their lives, as acts of anti-Asian bias and violence have accelerated from coast to coast — an unconscionable burden our fellow Americans have been forced to bear, even as so many Asian Americans serve their communities and our nation tirelessly on the front lines of the pandemic.

"Too often throughout our history, acts of hate and violence directed at Asian Americans have been met with silence," Biden continued. "Our nation must stand together to speak out against hate, and declare unequivocally: These acts are wrong. They are un-American. And they must stop." 

The bill should have no trouble passing the Democratic-majority in the House and Biden has already expressed his support.

"We’ve all heard the sickening stories and seen the horrifying videos of Asian Americans being beaten, slashed and spat on. Today, the Senate said enough is enough, and underscored loud and clear that there is no place for hate anywhere in our society," said Rep. Grace Meng, who sponsored the House version of the bill.

The Hate Crimes Act would appoint a Department of Justice employee to monitor and keep a record of potential hate crimes and expedite any legal actions against individuals who may fall under the new law's parameters.

Stop AAPI Hate, a community-based organization, has compiled over 3,800 acts of hate against AAPI over the course of a year when the pandemic became apparent in the U.S. In the first two months of 2021 alone, over 500 incidents have been reported to the group.

The hate incidents range from verbal harassment, bullying and vandalism to physical assaults, some of which resulted in the death of the victims.

"More reporting of hate crimes will provide us with increased data and a more accurate picture of the attacks that have been occurring against those of Asian descent, and a more centralized and unified way of reviewing these crimes would help to address the problem in a more effective manner," said Meng. 

"I have heard from so many Asian Americans who tell me that they are scared to walk outside. Families won’t let their kids go to the park or play outdoors. People are urging their parents and grandparents to stay inside, telling them that they’ll run their errands and deliver groceries to them. Being forced to endure this terror and fear is unconscionable and unacceptable. Everybody in our country deserves to feel safe, and that includes the Asian American community."

Congressional Democrats urge Republicans to support Hate Crimes Act

Rep. Andy Kim describes his experiences of anti-Asian bias since the pandemic began.

One of the first tests of the U.S. Senate's stated goal of bipartisanship will be the legislation addressing the rising number of hat crimes and violence directed at Asian Americans.

Top congressional Democrats are calling on their Republican colleagues to support the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act co-authored by Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-HI, and Rep. Grace Meng, D-NY. A vote on the bill could occur this week.

"For more than a year, the Asian American community has been fighting two viruses, the COVID-19 pandemic and anti-Asian hate," Meng said during a press conference on Tuesday. "We've heard about and seen videos of both young and elderly Asian Americans being shoved to the ground, stomped on, being spat on and shunned. These heinous acts have been outrageous, unconscionable and they must end."

"Combating hate should not be a partisan issue," Meng added. "We must all as Democrats and Republicans stand together against this racism and violence and say enough is enough."

The bill would create a position in the Justice Department to review COVID-19 hate crimes. It would also establish online reporting and it would be in multiple languages. There would be a public campaign to educate people about appropriate language and guidance to reduce discriminatory language when describing the COVID-19 pandemic, too.

Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he would support a bi-partisan amendment.

“Their bill would provide resources to state and local law enforcement to improve hate crime reporting, increase training and establish pathways to rehabilitation,” Schumer said.

Indeed, some Republicans have voiced their support for the bill.

"As a proud husband of an Asian American woman, I think this discrimination against Asian Americans is a real problem," said Republican Sen. Mitch McConnell, who is married to Elaine Chao, the former Bush and Trump-era Cabinet secretary.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, said she hopes her Republican colleagues will join her in supporting Hirono's bill. "I certainly hope so," she said. "I think it's an important issue and one that's worthy of our consideration."

The AAPI community has experienced a dramatic spike in the number of hate crimes in the past year. The organization Stop AAPI Hate documented about 3,800 attacks from the pandemic's onset in the U.S. last March to February of this year, and that is very likely an undercount because many attacks go unreported. 

Hirono praised President Biden for his early support in passing the legislation.

Referring to Donald Trump, Hirono said, "When you have a president who deems the virus to be the 'China virus' or to have members of his administration refer to it as 'kung flu,' you create an environment where people will be motivated because of whatever reasons they have to commit these kinds of crimes."

Trump frequently used racist phrases like "kung flu," "China Virus" or Whuan Flu in referring to the coronavirus.

"Words matter," said Hawaii's Hirono.

Earlier, Biden had urged his support for the bill. "I urge Congress to swiftly pass the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, which would expedite the federal government’s response to the rise of hate crimes exacerbated during the pandemic, support state and local governments to improve hate crimes reporting, and ensure that hate crimes information is more accessible to Asian American communities," said Biden.

It should be a no-brainer to vote in favor of the bill, but the political divide is so deep in Washington that a resolution last year denouncing hate incidents toward Asian Americans  during the pandemic failed to go up for a vote in the GOP-dominated Senate last year

The House passed the legislation, also introduced by Meng., on Sept. 17, 2020 in a 243-164 vote, with all 164 nays coming from Republicans. Only 14 GOP members of the House voted for the resolution.

During the press conference, members of Congress told reporters of some experiences with discrimination in the past year.

"Before, if I was walking around outside I would have my earbuds on, I'd be listening to books on tape," Hirono described. "I would never do that now because of the incidents of totally unprovoked hate crimes against AAPIs."

Rep. Andy Kim, D-N.J., said he has never before felt this "level of fear and vulnerability."

"Over the last month, I've shared stories I've never shared before, I've opened up in ways that I never had before because the moment calls upon [you]," he said. "When I worked at the State Department as a diplomat, I was banned from working on issues related to Korea, because I'm Korean American."

He said his 5-year-old son came home and told him "a bigger kid kept calling him 'Chinese boy, Chinese boy' over and over again."

"I really do believe that the next few weeks will determine the next few decades of how Asian Americans are treated and understood and accepted in this country," Kim said.

EDITOR'S NOTE: A word of caution -- this news article is laced with opinion. Readers are encouraged to view other news outlets to form their own opinions.

Bill introduced would combat anti-Asian hate

Federal legislation addressing the rise of hate crimes targeting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders was introduced Thursday in the House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. 

U.S. Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, and Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., introduced 

 the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, which would assign a point person at the Department of Justice (DOJ) to expedite the review of COVID-19-related hate crimes, providing support for state and local law enforcement agencies to respond to these hate crimes, and coordinating with local and federal partners to mitigate racially discriminatory language used to describe the pandemic.

“We’ve seen the horrifying consequences of racist language as AAPI communities across our country experience hate crimes and violence related to the pandemic,” said Senator Hirono. 

“The COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act addresses the surge in violence against AAPI communities by dedicating an official at the Department of Justice to expeditiously review hate crimes reported to law enforcement. The bill also provides resources for communities to come together and fight intolerance and hate. This is no less than victims deserve.”

“The ongoing anti-Asian hate crimes and incidents, especially against our elderly Asian Americans, is absolutely horrific. I am honored to introduce the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act with Senator Hirono to address this disgusting pattern of hate,” said Congresswoman Meng. 

“Before this pandemic started, I urged everyone—including elected officials—to not blame Asian Americans for the virus. My words were not heeded. The former president and his Congressional Republican enablers trafficked racist, bigoted terms to describe COVID-19. In doing so, their language stoked people’s fears and created an atmosphere of intolerance and violence, which persists even today. 

"Since the beginning of the pandemic there has been nearly 3,000 reported incidents of physical, verbal, and online attacks against Asian Americans. Even in my own district in Queens, New York, Asian Americans have been attacked," continued Meng.

"To combat those acts, we need DOJ to prioritize addressing these heinous acts by designating a point person for these COVID-19 related hate crimes; make it easier for victims to report crimes committed against them; and expand public education campaigns to address COVID-19 hate crimes and incidents. This must end and it is why we are working to ensure our justice system has the people and resources to effectively account for and mitigate anti-Asian hate crimes. I look forward to this bill becoming law.”

The COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act directs DOJ to:

• Designate a DOJ employee to assist with expedited review of COVID-19 hate crimes reported to federal, state, and/or local law enforcement;
• Provide guidance for state and local law enforcement agencies to:
• establish online reporting of hate crimes or incidents, and to have online reporting available in multiple languages;
• expand culturally competent and linguistically appropriate public education campaigns, and collection of data and public reporting of hate crimes; and
• Issue guidance detailing best practices to mitigate racially discriminatory language in describing the COVID–19 pandemic, in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the COVID–19 Health Equity Task Force and community-based organizations.

Rep. Grace Meng, left, and Sen. Mazie Hirono.

“NAPABA applauds Senator Hirono and Congresswoman Meng for their decisive action to introduce legislation responding to the rise in anti-Asian hate incidents during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said A.B. Cruz, III, president of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA). 

“NAPABA is committed to ensuring that hate crimes against the Asian American community are properly investigated and prosecuted. The expedited review of hate crimes reported to federal, state, and local law enforcement by the Department of Justice will increase accountability in addressing hate against our community, and establishing a platform for online reporting of hate crimes and incidents in multiple languages will allow more victims to come forward.”

“We are grateful for Senator Hirono and Representative Meng’s leadership in responding to the increased attacks on Asian Americans during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,”said John C. Yang, President and Executive Director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC. 

“We need improvements in the reporting and handling of COVID-19-related hate crimes by law enforcement at the local, state, and federal levels, as well as making systems more accessible for people with limited proficiency in English," said Yang. 

"We appreciate the emphasis on linguistically appropriate and culturally competent engagement on data collection and reporting. Asian Americans Advancing Justice | AAJC is committed to countering hate in all its forms, and we will to continue to push for a comprehensive approach to documenting and addressing hate crimes and prioritizing protecting health and safety for all.”

Hirono has championed efforts to support AAPI communities, including calling for DOJ to proactively address coronavirus-related anti-Asian discrimination and hate crimes, introducing resolutions to honor May as Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, introducing legislation to support immigrant families during the pandemic, and urging Congressional leadership to build inclusive coronavirus relief packages.