Examining why hate crimes are at historic highs — especially in Los Angeles

Examining why hate crimes are at historic highs — especially in Los Angeles

Transcript¹

NPR's Leila Fadel talks to Robin² Toma, executive director of the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations, about a 71% increase in reported hate crimes in Los Angeles last year.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Hate crimes are climbing up - way up. The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino found that hate crimes climbed almost 50% last year. And anti-Asian hate crime went up by over 300%. It was happening in more than a dozen of the biggest U.S. cities, but Los Angeles recorded the most hate crime of any U.S. city since 2000, the most of this century. That's where we found Robin Toma, the executive director of LA County's Commission on Human Relations. I started by asking him if these numbers are an accurate reflection of the levels of hate in America right now.

ROBIN TOMA: Well, the answer to that would be yes and no. Yes, in the sense that we are, like many jurisdictions³, very diverse. We face hate crime because of the diversity of our population, because of many causes. But we're different in that we're the largest county in the country. We're the third-largest city in the country. And, you know, we do have a reporting system that's really well-developed. But certainly, we know that we're not unique in experiencing the increase in hate crime that's been happening across the country.

FADEL: So these - when you talk about hate crime, this is about more than ugly words or attacks with slurs⁴, right? How much of this is physical violence?

TOMA: Well, you know, we've been reaching higher levels of violent hate crime - that is crimes that are targeting people's physical well-being⁵ or threatening physical harm. That's been at a higher level than we have seen before. And, in fact, it's the highest in 17 years.

FADEL: What type of incidents are you seeing? Who's being attacked? Who's doing the attacking?

TOMA: Really, what we're seeing is just an overall increase in hate crime across many groups. And for us, it's really telling because even though we know we've built a system that has recently increased reporting through LA vs. Hate, which creates an alternative way for people to report hate - not going to - calling the police but simply dialing 211, our local social services hotline - that we have seen many more reports. But we know that there's such a long ways to go to counter the underreporting that is typical in hate crime.

FADEL: But this increase is not just a factor of past underreporting, right? You're seeing an actual increase in hate crimes across races in Los Angeles and really in this country. What can be done?

TOMA: Well, you know, actually, there's a lot that can be done. And one of the things that we're recognizing is that one of the reasons why people don't report hate crime even today is because of discomfort⁶ with going to the police or feeling that it won't matter. People feel that they've been victims of a hate crime, but then when they get together with the police, they're told, well, that doesn't quite equal a crime, so we can't do anything about it. And so they feel very deflated⁷, and that word spreads.

FADEL: So, for example, what might be in a situation like that - somebody feels that they've been attacked for their race or identity?

TOMA: So there's an example here in LA with Hong Lee, a woman who was in a restaurant and found herself being very intensely and angrily attacked by a man who was continually launching epithets⁸ and denigrating⁹ comments because of her being a woman, because of her race of being Asian. And when she called the police and they finally arrived, she was told that this is - happens all the time. There's nothing you can do about it. She decided¹⁰ she would reach out. And as a result, she let the world know what was happening to her. And she's become an advocate for us, really an ambassador for LA vs. Hate. And as a result, so many people came forward about the same man who assaulted her, verbally assaulted her. And they came forward and actually identified hate crimes he had committed.

FADEL: What about for people who just have hesitance towards government agencies? You know, I'm thinking of undocumented folks. Would they feel safe calling 211, calling the LA County?

TOMA: Yes because what we try to do is really make it clear that we are completely confidential¹¹. We do not report the information to the police. And we really put the word out in a way that is, to be honest, not so governmental. We also also tell them, though, that if they want to report it to the police, we can help them do it anonymously¹². And that's huge because people do fear having to directly contact the police.

FADEL: I think so often we get caught up in the numbers, the 46% increase, the 339% increase. But can you help us understand just how frightening this is for victims, for communities when they are accosted¹³ in this way, attacked in this way?

TOMA: Well, I can't really overstate the impact it's had on people because it's not only the fact that we're living in a pandemic, and there's already a level of fear of being in contact with other people. But now you have people who are expressing greater hostility¹⁴ and greater violence, as I pointed¹⁵ out, than ever before. So what we see is that the kinds of attacks that people are sharing on social media, that people hear about - it really has instill fear in particularly targeted groups like Asians during the pandemic.

Historically, African Americans have been one of the largest groups, always overrepresented in our hate crime numbers - and Latinos, as well. And we know that Muslims and Jews have been targeted and not just by - I think it's one thing when individuals say things to you, but when you have a government leader, when you have the president of your country targeting your group, as Trump¹⁶ did towards Mexicans, towards Muslims, it sends a signal and creates an atmosphere that is much more chilling, much more frightening. And it has resulted in the increase, you know, in the kind of incivility and hate that we've been seeing.

FADEL: And former President Trump was also blamed for some of the anti-Asian hate based on how he spoke¹⁷ about the pandemic.

TOMA: Sure. His references to the kung flu, the China virus - I mean, all of those things fueled the preexisting prejudice that existed to really take the anti-Asian hate crime to the highest levels ever. You know, we have been trying to do something different, which is that we've been going directly to communities where that's happening. And we have been engaging with people, training them in how to be not passive bystanders but be active, to be upstanders, standing¹⁸ up to hate. We really do need to change the sense of safety by people showing their support and solidarity¹⁹ with victims in being against hate.

FADEL: Robin Toma is executive director of the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations. Thank you so much.

TOMA: Thank you, Leila.

(SOUNDBITE OF MIRROR INSIDE'S "HIGH UP")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 robin   

n.知更鸟，红襟鸟

参考例句：

• The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
• We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟，知道春天要到了。

3 jurisdictions   

司法权( jurisdiction的名词复数 )； 裁判权； 管辖区域； 管辖范围

参考例句：

• Butler entreated him to remember the act abolishing the heritable jurisdictions. 巴特勒提醒他注意废除世袭审判权的国会法令。
• James I personally adjudicated between the two jurisdictions. 詹姆士一世亲自裁定双方纠纷。

4 slurs   

含糊的发音( slur的名词复数 )； 玷污； 连奏线； 连唱线

参考例句：

• One should keep one's reputation free from all slurs. 人应该保持名誉不受责备。
• Racial slurs, racial jokes, all having to do with being Asian. 种族主义辱骂，种族笑话，都是跟亚裔有关的。

5 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

6 discomfort   

n.不舒服，不安，难过，困难，不方便

参考例句：

• One has to bear a little discomfort while travelling.旅行中总要忍受一点不便。
• She turned red with discomfort when the teacher spoke.老师讲话时她不好意思地红着脸。

7 deflated   

adj. 灰心丧气的

参考例句：

• I was quite deflated by her lack of interest in my suggestions.他对我的建议兴趣不大，令我感到十分气馁。
• He was deflated by the news.这消息令他泄气。

8 epithets   

n.（表示性质、特征等的）词语( epithet的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He insulted me, using rude epithets. 他用粗话诅咒我。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He cursed me, using a lot of rude epithets. 他用上许多粗鲁的修饰词来诅咒我。 来自辞典例句

9 denigrating   

v.诋毁，诽谤( denigrate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They bristled at his denigrating description of their activities. 听到他在污蔑他们的活动，他们都怒发冲冠。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The KGB pigeonholed his report and reprimanded him for denigrating a brother officer. 克格勃把他的调查报告扔在一边，不闻不问，反而说他往同志脸上抹黑。 来自辞典例句

10 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

11 confidential   

adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的

参考例句：

• He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
• We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。

12 anonymously   

ad.用匿名的方式

参考例句：

• The manuscripts were submitted anonymously. 原稿是匿名送交的。
• Methods A self-administered questionnaire was used to survey 536 teachers anonymously. 方法采用自编“中小学教师职业压力问卷”对536名中小学教师进行无记名调查。

13 accosted   

v.走过去跟…讲话( accost的过去式和过去分词 )；跟…搭讪；（乞丐等）上前向…乞讨；（妓女等）勾搭

参考例句：

• She was accosted in the street by a complete stranger. 在街上，一个完全陌生的人贸然走到她跟前搭讪。
• His benevolent nature prevented him from refusing any beggar who accosted him. 他乐善好施的本性使他不会拒绝走上前向他行乞的任何一个乞丐。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 hostility   

n.敌对，敌意；抵制［pl.］交战，战争

参考例句：

• There is open hostility between the two leaders.两位领导人表现出公开的敌意。
• His hostility to your plan is well known.他对你的计划所持的敌意是众所周知的。

15 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

16 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

17 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

18 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

19 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。