The President of United States, Joe Biden has signed into law anti-hate crime legislation in a bid to respond to the increase in attacks on Asian Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The newly signed law, COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, would create a position centered on anti-Asian hate crimes and allocate resources to facilitate state and local reporting with the Justice Department.
Vice President Kamala Harris, who happens to be the first woman and person of Asian descent to hold the office of Vice-President, started the signing ceremony by thanking lawmakers present for their work like Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, and Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., who introduced the bill.
While applauding, she said: “To the members of our United States Congress on both sides of the aisle who helped pass the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, thank you.
“Because of you, history will remember this day and this moment when our nation took action to combat hate.”
Biden said he hopes the signing ceremony marks the end “first significant break” in a hyper-partisan era and told the Asian American community that “We see you.”
He said: “For centuries, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, diverse and vibrant communities have helped build this nation only to be often stepped over, forgotten, or ignored.
“My message to all of those who are hurting is, we see you. And the Congress has said, we see you. And we are committed to stop the hatred and the bias.”
According to a report by the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, hate crimes against Asians and Asian Americans more than doubled in the first quarter of 2021 compared with the same period last year.
