San Gabriel Valley Coalition Fights Asian Hate Crimes

(Photo – Chapendra)

On March 17, the Joint Chinese University Alumni Association of Southern California (JCUAA), headed by President Steven Kuo, sponsored a virtual press conference bringing together a coalition of groups to jointly condemn discrimination and hate crimes against Asian Americans.

By Chasity Jennings-Nunez

The JCUAA is an organization of 38 Chinese university alumni associations with more than 40,000 members in Southern California.

Over 90 people participated in the Zoom event, with the majority representing Asian community groups, and local, state and national political offices. While the groups and organizations were based in Los Angeles County, particularly the San Gabriel Valley, the officials who joined brought the support of US Congresspersons, California State representatives and numerous local and city government officers. State Representatives Young Kim and Ed Chau as well as L.A. County Supervisor Kathyrn Barger participated with recorded or live comments in support of stopping the violence against all Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.

The organizational and government leaders were eager to participate and passionate in their call for recognition of the growing problem. This meeting was planned before the March 16th murder of eight people in Atlanta, Georgia. Six of those victims were Asian and the belief that this was a hate crime against Asian-Americans is growing. The presenters called for a response to from State and Federal government agencies, legislation to protect Asian people, and prosecution of those who promote and commit hate crimes. They also want to find ways to support and encourage victims to report incidents to the police. The over-arching theme was a plea for all people to stand together and denounce the anti-Asian sentiments and violence that have become more common since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Many of the political participants, which included Congresswoman Judy Chu and Congressman Ted Lieu, cited Donald Trump’s repeated statements blaming China and vilifying Chinese people as the cause of the Covid-19 pandemic, as part of the kindling that has fueled the fire of racist actions toward Asian citizens.

City of San Gabriel

Having a population of residents that is over 60% Asian in San Gabriel City, the concern about the increase in verbal and physical violence against this group is more than a theoretical problem. San Gabriel’s newly appointed Mayor, Chin Ho Liao and Vice Mayor, Tony Ding, along with Councilmember Jason Pu were participants and guests at the press conference. Mayor Liao reiterated the importance of involving local authorities and encouraged all bystanders and victims of incidents and crimes against Asian residents to report them immediately. Fear and intimidation, especially for residents whose immigration status may leave them vulnerable to their own legal prosecution, can be reasons for under-reporting.

At their March 16th meeting, the SG City Council announced that the SGPD is a member of a newly created group called the Asian Crime Victims Work Group. Captain Riki Nakamura, of the SGPD, is heading this group that will have representation from each of the SGV police departments as well as other stakeholders. The goal is to reach out to community members to get their ideas on protecting residents and to empower them to speak up and report crimes. While the actual number of reported crimes against Asian residents in SG is significantly lower for 2020 compared to 2019, Chief Harris and the San Gabriel City Council are being proactive to keep all San Gabriel residents safe and taking additional steps at this time to address the current potential threats against Asian residents.

Joint statement

The JCUAA press conference culminated with the entire group reading a joint statement outlining their goals:

1. Protection of the safety and property of Asian Americans
2. Immediately stop racial discrimination and hate crimes against Asian Americans
3. Advocation for integration, interaction and coordination among ethnic groups
4. Enacting of legislation to effectively protect the rights of Asian Americans

What Can You Do To Make Our Communities Safer and More Inclusive?

- “See Something, Say Something!”
Report incidents of discrimination and hate crimes to local authorities, directly or by calling 911 and organizations like stopaapihate.org.
- Be informed about what is happening.
There are many reputable online resources like Asian Americans Advancing Justice or Anti-Asian Violence Resources.
- Support policies and initiatives that will lead to inclusion and positive interactions between people from diverse groups.

We all deserve to live free from violence, intimidation and fear, but we all must work together, because not one of us is safe, until all of us are safe.