By Diksha Sharma
Introduction
“A nation’s greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members.”
– Mahatma Gandhi
A Nation is community of people having physical boundaries which is formed on the basis of religion, beliefs, language, and ethics and many more. But what makes a Nation great? It is all about the idea that how people are treated no matter whether weaker sections or stronger sections. It is all about contribution made to unite all the people and community.
Great leadership, law crimes, peace, no racism, etc. all factors contribute to make a good nation. A nation’s power not only survives in military or armed forces but also in the unity of the people that how would they come together in any national emergency.
Strongest Nation is always determined by its communal behavior of the people living in the nation.
It is not required that a good Nation supposed to be crime free because every society will have those people also who are opposite to the ethics and conducts of humanity. They will always try to close the eyes to the reputation of the country just for their own erroneous beliefs and will always carry out all erring and outlaw activities.
Assault, murder, rape, kidnapping, etc. there are many crimes that held in a Nation and can also show the way to down the reputation of it.
What about the crimes against a particular religion, social group or nationality? Is this just a question mark on whole Nation or only on particular group of people?
On one hand the whole world has come together and is fighting against a deadly virus and trying to come up with its sufferings as soon as possible and on the other hand people of America is fighting on race and religion of people.
America is a developed and a strong country but then also people of America are victim of these crimes which is on the basis of race.
A particular word has given to the crimes which are against race or religion or ethnicity of people is “Hate Crime”. Is hate crime effect a single victim or the whole community?
Is this a rarest crime or deadliest crime? What are the effects of hate crime? How American government fought against it? These some questions are going to be answered in this article.
Hate Crime: Racism Motivated Crime
“Hate crime” generally refers to criminal acts which are seen to have been motivated by bias against one or more of the social groups, or by bias against their derivatives.
It is an Act of violence against somebody because they are from different race, religion and sexuality etc.
Criminal offence and hate motivated crime both add up to the hate crime. From above definition it is very much clear that hate crime is not just for a single individual but against the whole community. These types of crimes are mostly motivated by bias for any society.
Crime based on hate can be defined as offence done by an offender that motivates him that the victim belongs to some group from which an offender has a feeling of hate. Even the community of disables can also be the victim of hate crime. Bias Motivated Crime just a kind of thing done by stereotypes.
Generally, criminal offence is non-biased which is done by the offender just in case of some personal issues related with victim or just to distemper the victim.
But biased crime is totally different from this as they are done because the offenders identify their victim groups as evil or they consider victim groups to be a threat to their way of life, community, or their rights.
An incident took place in Indian in February 2021, where a man placed and burned a cross in front of neighbor’s property because they were planning to remove a tree. He also displayed the sign of anti- black racial slurs and played a song “Dixie” on repeat and also threw eggs on them.
He pleaded guilty for the acts done by him and he faced a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each of the charged offenses[1].
The Act of the man in above incident shows his detestation towards his neighbors who was black. He was in a sensation to see them suffer and because of such dislike he got open to take criminal steps. This type of incidents just motivates racism.
Racism is an illogical faith with no significant explanation with a wrong belief that people are superior of other people irrespective of their color and race. God has made us, and no one has chosen themselves to be black, white, dark, fair or anything. This is nothing that should make a person feel guilty for such genetic characters.
It is outrageous, inhumane and a matter of shame to make fun of other people just due to their cultural background or color of skin. We all are having the same basic desires for life, liberty and happiness.
We should not be dividing anyone by his/her religion or discriminate because of skin color, sexual orientation or other prejudices.
Last year in December 2020, four men were charged for attacking a man who was black and for using racial slurs against him. While investigation of the FBI they also made false statement about the incident and for lying about the use of racial slurs. They were found guilty for committing racial- motivated assault and for also making false statements.
The hate crime charges carry a maximum penalty of ten years in prison. The false statements charges carry a maximum penalty of five years. An indictment is a formal accusation of criminal conduct, not evidence of guilt. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until each is proven guilty[2].
As everyone has witnessed that last year, 2020 was the curse on every Nation and its people as Covid-19 began spreading all over the nations. Many politicians including Donald Trump blamed China for this pandemic. Even after he was well known by the tenuous situations of the Nation that if he would say anything that will result into violence.
His hated message of blaming China for global spread of the novel virus and repeated use of “Chinese Virus” sparked “Anti–Asian” hate crimes. His venomous Political control was possibly identified as the motives for the rising anti-Asian wave in the US.
Asian American Hate: Violent Racism
When we are dealing with Asian American Hate then the first thing, we need to understand about is, who are Asian American?
Asian Americans are Americans of Asian who are immigrants from Asia. This term designate many communities of Asia and their descendents in the United States.
America earlier was also the victim of anti Asian racism because of the belief that Asian countries are strong enough as a political, economic and military. A lot of evidence has been suggested that people of Asian descent are becoming special targets of violence.
But last year 2020 was found that hate crimes have increased than before.
In modern American history, Asian Americans have been regularly blamed during periods of national duress. World War II saw the forced custody of about 120,000 Japanese Americans on the West Coast an estimated 62 percent of whom were U.S. citizens in the wake of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
After the Vietnam War, refugees from Southeast Asia faced routine discrimination and hate.
In 1982, Vincent Chin, a Chinese American, was beaten to death by two Detroit autoworkers who thought he was Japanese. The killing took place during a recession that was partly blamed on the rise of the Japanese auto industry[3].
The wave of racism against Asian Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic is just the latest example. In February 2020, a middle school student in Los Angles was harassed by his class mates by saying that he was a covid-19 carrier and should go back to China.
The boy replied that he wasn’t Chinese. For this reply he allegedly received 20 punches which end up to the emergency room.Anti-Asian attacks has left Asian Americans across the country scared and concerned.
Then Trump’s statement on Twitter referring Novel Corona Virus as “Chinese Virus” or “China Virus” acted as fuel in Anti Asian racism. His repeatedly saying this more strengthened the minds of anti Asian groups to spread more hate crime.
COVID-19 has enabled the spread of racism and created national insecurity with the increase in anti-Asian hate crime.
Blaming each other at the time of emergency or in any other state of affairs is not new. But somewhere it seems like it was a Political agenda but citizens were also totally liable as they also were in favor of that hated comments and did not use their own thoughts that people living there with them also going through the same situations.
Asian Americans always have been a victim of harassment, physical attacks. Race can play a vital role in violence even if the offender does not show a clear intention of racism against the victim.
Just like 21 years boy of Atlanta, killed 10 individuals out of which 6 were Asian American but all of them were women. This shooting incident was held in the massage parlors of Atlanta. After investigating the offender, the police in press conference stated that the suspect was not having racial prejudice against them, but he was having sexual addiction. Massage Parlor shooting leaved 8 people dead.[4]
The suspect’s statement gives an idea about that he thought those women workers prostitute. This is an addition to all incidents which Asian American has suffered through many years.
The incident has left all Asian women in a questionable moral character and has placed the burden on the women to prove that they are not prostitutes.
How is America Combating Anti-Asian Racism?
From the last year Asian Americans are being victim of racist rhetoric and corona virus pandemic has uptick in violence. It is observed that many Asians are afraid of coming on streets just a fear that they will again get harassed by someone.
“Too many Asian Americans have been walking up and down the streets and worrying, waking up each morning the past year feeling their safety and the safety of their loved ones are at stake. They have been attacked, blamed, scapegoat, and harassed. They have been verbally assaulted, physically assaulted, killed… The conversation we had today with the AAPI leaders, and that we are hearing all across the country, is that hate, and violence often hide in plain sight. And it is often met with silence. That has been true throughout our history, but that has to change — because our silence is complicity. We cannot be complicit. We have to speak out. We have to act.”
– President Joe Biden, March 19, 2021[5]
President’s statement clearly indicates that he is absolutely aware about the situations of the community of Asian American that from how much pain they are going through. They are immensely terrified from their experience of last year and present year.
It shows his concern for them who were physically and verbally assaulted, killed and harassed.
“We cannot be complicit. We have to speak out. We have to act.”
It seems he was not in favor to deal with the situation lightly and will take severe actions to save his Nation from these crimes who are gradually entertaining these racial thoughts.
The statement made by the President seems like a day after a long dark night and a chance of relief to sufferers. As the Nation is experiencing a phrase of grief and anger which is over and over again going on and resulting as the horrific violence Asian American community.
Victims not only face physical danger, but they also go through mental and emotional distress. A horrifying statement which made all of us think about the situation they all are going through and even they are stacked in a mental trauma which is obliterating them internally and even socially also.
A statement came out of an Asian American girl which shows feeling of terror she was in:
“I am saddened and frustrated by this ongoing violence. I am a first-generation Asian American, born and raised in San Francisco, the daughter of immigrant parents. I am scared, I am anxious, and I hurt for our community. Having been born and raised here, I’ve never experienced a more frightful time than now, for myself as a small 5’1” Asian woman certainly. But more so for my grandmother, a resident of San Francisco Chinatown, who’s shared her fear of being helpless in the event she is targeted for discrimination. She is amongst the many AAPI, who are now afraid to leave their own homes as a result of these reported attacks.”[6]
In midtown Manhattan, a 65-year-old woman was attacked by a man. Offender kicked in her stomach, stomped on her face. Then he began shouting anti-Asian slurs and also told her “You don’t belong here”. The woman got serious injuries and was hospitalized.
This entire incident was captured in a camera that helped police to find out that man. The offender was charged for the assault of hate crime.
President Joe Biden with the approval of the congress signed legislation to deal with the circumstance of racial hate crimes which are increasing every passing day against Asian American.
The Bill was passed by The White House with a majority of votes of 364-62. This Bill has allowed the justice department to estimate the incidents of hate crimes.
This legislation have granted more new powers in support of local law enforcement agencies to improve their investigation, identification and reporting of incidents driven by bias, which often go underreported.
Grace Meng, a Democratic congresswoman also go by a statement on behalf of the Bill passed “Asian Americans have been screaming out for help, and the House and Senate and President Biden have clearly heard our pleas,”[7]
On other hand Dr. Robert Redfield, the Director of the CDC, bear witness that use of the term “Chinese corona virus” is wrong and inappropriate which have linked a rise of hate crimes and these types of statement may give this social issue a new face of Political rhetoric.
The Bill is strictly working and also provided a support for the law enforcement officials and local officials to come across hate crimes incidents by means of investigating the reports and threats regarding Asian American.
The legislation has assigned an official in Justice Department principally for the victims who has reported the hate crimes and to bring the wrongdoer in the eyes of law.
As the people have gone through many dangerous and emotional incidents that it must take time for them to heal and even they will not forgot that what was happened with them. This legislation can help them to grow socially but what about their emotional and mental interests.
Conclusion
Crimes on the beliefs of racism, religion, sex or gender is just a shame on our developed and modern society. On one hand we talk about equality that our law makers are doing nothing on the matter and on the other hand we ourselves promoting discrimination.
Everyone’s genetic characters are God gifted and we do not have right to question the creation of the god or to humiliate these characters. These types of acts only show frivolous thinking of society that how much color, caste or gender of a person matter upon human race.
On the concluded part I must say that these beliefs are social evils which are hollowing out our cultures and mental faith. America is fighting a lot from these social evils, and we must take a lesson from this incident.
- justice.gov/ ↑
- justice.gov/usao ↑
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The scapegoating of Asian Americans available at news.harvard.edu/
- theconversation.com ↑
- whitehouse.gov/ ↑
- salesforce.com/ ↑
- theguardian.com/ ↑