Who Will Help Stop the Hate?

Los Angeles enjoyed a reputation as a region of tolerance after World War II. For decades, it provided a haven for African-Americans fleeing the apartheid of the South. It offered refuge for Latinos fleeing wars and revolutions. Asians also settled here, despite historical discrimination, as the region evolved to embrace people of all ethnicities and sexual orientations.

But that reputation is now at risk.

Hate crimes--acts directed at an individual, institution or business because of race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender or disability--hit a record high of 736 last year, according to the county Human Relations Commission’s 13th annual report. That sorry count would have been even higher had the report reflected riot-related incidents such as the broad targeting of Korean-owned businesses.

“The Asian Pacific American Legal Center estimates that 3,500 Asian-owned businesses were damaged or destroyed in the riots: everything from newspapers and dry cleaners to liquor and clothing stores,” the report said. The majority of these incidents were not included in the report itself because law enforcement agencies were not able to accurately identify all the hate crimes committed during the riots.

The document listed African-Americans as the top targets of the hate crimes that were reported. Hate crimes against all races grew by nearly 24% last year; they were dominated by physical assaults and included three murders.

Gay men were frequent targets, although hate crimes based on sexual orientation did dip slightly. Lesbians, though a rarer target, did not escape harm. Latinos, Jews, Anglos and others also suffered assaults, threats and vandalism that can be classified as hate crimes.

The experts blame the increase on the general rise in crime. They also cite fallout from the riots, the increasing tensions prompted by a poor local economy, and hostility nurtured by the growing chasm between the haves and the have-nots.

Hate crimes are against state law. Laws can’t stop the hate, but tough enforcement can discourage the crimes. All of us need somehow to contribute to a climate that fosters understanding and discourages intolerance.