Asian Hate Crimes in New York City Already Surpass Last Year's Total

28 Cases Last Year... Already 34 This Year
Only 3 Cases in 2019
More Cases Expected Considering Unreported Incidents

Chuck Schumer, the Senate Majority Leader of the U.S. Democratic Party, is giving a speech at an anti-Asian hate crime rally held in Manhattan's Koreatown on the afternoon of the 1st (local time).
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy New York=Correspondent Baek Jong-min] Police statistics have confirmed a sharp increase in hate crimes against Asians in New York City, USA. While hate crimes against Asians have increased, hate crimes against other races have decreased, making the contrast even more striking.

The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 4th (local time) that the number of hate crimes against Asians reported to the New York Police Department (NYPD) was only 3 in 2019, but last year it was 28. Especially this year, 35 cases have already been reported to the NYPD, surpassing the total number of reports from last year.

Since hate crimes are generally underreported to the police, the actual number of incidents is believed to be higher, according to the NYT's analysis.

The NYT reported that based on its own tally analyzing media reports across the United States, more than 110 hate crimes targeting Asians have occurred from March last year to the present.

In particular, in cities like New York and Boston, hate crimes against races other than Asians have actually decreased.

The recorded crimes often involved verbal assaults such as "Go back to China" or "You are the virus" during the attacks, as well as racially discriminatory graffiti on homes or businesses owned by Asians. In subway stations, graffiti such as "Kill all Chinese" was also found.

The NYT pointed out that former President Donald Trump’s labeling of COVID-19 as the "Chinese virus" spread resentment against Asians.

Earlier, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki also mentioned that former President Trump’s "Chinese virus" remarks influenced the spread of hate crimes against Asians.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.