New Study Reveals Increase In Hate Crimes Targeting Asian Americans In LA
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — A new study reveals that hate crimes against the Asian American Pacific Islander community have gotten worse.
The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino found across 16 of America's largest cities and counties that there has been a 164 percent increase in anti-Asian hate crimes reported to police in the first quarter of 2021, as compared to the same time period last year.
New York saw the greatest increase at 223 percent. San Francisco saw an increase of 140 percent. And Los Angeles experienced an increase of 80 percent.
"For Los Angeles, we saw more anti-Asian hate crimes in the first quarter than we had for the whole year pre-pandemic 2019," said Prof. Brian Levin, the study's author.
"The pandemic was weaponized and Asian Americans were centered as vilified if you will, scapegoated," said LAPD Chief Michel Moore.
The LAPD this week is expected to release resource cards with information on where victims can get help if they become a victim of a hate crime.