WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the United States Commission on Civil Rights releases the report, The Federal Response to Anti-Asian Racism in the United States. Based on extensive research, expert and public testimony, the report assesses the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes in the U.S. from 2019 through 2021, and the federal role in preventing and enforcing federal hate crime laws.
This report examines three main areas: 1) national trends and data regarding the rise of hate incidents and hate crimes against members of Asian communities; 2) local and state law enforcement’s prevention and reporting practices regarding hate crimes; and 3) federal efforts and policies that encourage greater participation in reporting hate crime incidents, as well as prosecution and enforcement efforts to prevent hate crimes.
“The report indicates that language barriers are impeding the reporting of incidents and that many incidents that do not meet the legal criteria for hate crimes, such as racial slurs or being spat on, still evoke fear but go unaccounted for in official statistics. said Commission Chair, Rochelle Mercedes Garza. “Ultimately, the absence of adequate performance metrics poses a significant challenge in assessing the federal government's effectiveness in combating the surge in hate crimes against the Asian community. While these barriers continue to exist, the Commission has outlined holistic strategy to combat anti-Asian hate incidents, ranging from data collection improvements and legal enforcement to community support and education initiatives.”
“I am proud to have worked on the United States of America’s official, congressionally authorized, report on what’s been happening to our community since the dubbing COVID19 as the ‘China Virus’ inflicting people with the ‘Kung Flu’. Words matter, as this report shows,” said Commissioner Glenn Magpantay.
publicaffairs@usccr.gov