We welcome the passage of the anti-Asian hate crimes legislation by the House yesterday. It is a strong bipartisan demonstration that Congress and the American people stand united against the proliferation of attacks against Asian Americans, much of it resulting from vile conspiracy theories during the pandemic.
The bill, which follows a similar measure that passed overwhelmingly in the Senate last month, would establish a position at the Justice Department to expedite the agency’s review of hate crimes and expand the channels to report them. It would also encourage the creation of state-run hate crime hotlines, provide grants to law enforcement agencies that train their officers to identify hate crimes and introduce a series of public education campaigns around bias against people of Asian descent. The legislation will be sent to the White House for President Biden’s signature.
“Hate crimes against one community are attacks on the democratic fiber of society”
The Olga Lengyel Institute (TOLI) provides professional development seminars for educators in the US and abroad that link the lessons of the Holocaust and other genocides to current world events, working with teachers to promote a human rights and social justice agenda in their classrooms.