Hate Crimes Wane but Not by Enough : * Spotlight Must Be Kept on Actions to Eradicate Them

On the average, a hate crime or hate-related incident was reported nearly every other day last year in Orange County. That is an appalling number, yet it actually represents a slight improvement over 1992.

The Orange County Human Relations Commission, which began compiling lists of hate crimes and incidents in 1990 and issued its first report the next year, reported that the total in 1992 was 188; last year it fell to 180.

Among the incidents reported: An employee at an Irvine law firm was the target of anti-Semitic comments from a colleague. Among the crimes: A man thought by his assailants to be gay was savagely beaten in Laguna Beach.

Few groups were spared: whites, blacks, Latinos, Asian Americans, gays; all were targets. Most often singled out were gays and lesbians, accounting for 35 incidents, up from 25 reported in 1992. Next came Jews, 31 incidents, up from 19 the previous year, and African Americans, 29 incidents, a steep drop from the 61 in 1992.

Police from departments across Orange County deserve credit for helping compile the reports. Police officials have become sensitive to attacks motivated by ethnicity, religion and sexual orientation rather than just money or revenge, and have instructed the cop on the beat to be on guard for such attacks. A number of departments have designated one individual to handle hate crimes, making coordination easier and increasing the likelihood that seemingly separate incidents will be seen as part of a larger picture. Still, the Human Relations Commission is hoping for better reporting by some less diligent departments.

A number of police officials meet periodically with leaders of community organizations who banded together as a “hate crimes network.” That is a good idea, because it makes it easier for groups to report incidents directed against their members and lets police keep open the lines of communication.

Jonathan Bernstein of the Orange County chapter of the Anti-Defamation League, which monitors anti-Semitic incidents, said the number of verbal and physical attacks on Jews reached a record high last year--41 by his group’s count, 31 by the commission’s, using a different reporting method.

But Bernstein cautioned that part of the increase from the usual number of 17 or 18 may be the result of people being more willing to report the attacks. That is a good sign if it means someone feels confident enough not to hide his or her identity as a gay or lesbian, a Jew or a Muslim, or whatever. It also indicates that the person attacked believes that reporting the incident will do good, rather than shrugging it off with a “nobody cares” attitude.

Among those who care are state and federal judges, whose tough sentences in Orange County cases last year sent a clear message that hate crimes are especially vicious and will not be tolerated. A federal judge sentenced a 20-year-old to eight years in prison and a 17-year-old to nearly five years after they attacked homes and synagogues and plotted attacks on Jews, blacks, Asians and Latinos. A Superior Court judge sentenced the attacker of the man he presumed to be gay in Laguna Beach to 10 years in prison.

The Human Relations Commission has done a good job of shining the spotlight on incidents and crimes of hate. There may not be many who act upon their hatred, but unfortunately their power to hurt others is great. We need to be reminded that this behavior exists, so we can reach out to victims, take action against the perpetrators and try to eradicate the poison before it spreads.