Spike in violence against Asian Americans has 'stoked fear and paranoia'

End The Violence Towards Asians rally
(Image credit: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images)

The COVID-19 pandemic launched a wave of harassment and attacks on Asian Americans last year, but experts say it's escalating even further recently.

The New York Times reports "the number of hate crimes with Asian-American victims reported to the New York Police Department jumped to 28 in 2020, from just three the previous year, though activists and police officials say many additional incidents were not classified as hate crimes or went unreported." As Jo-Ann Yoo, executive director of the Asian American Federation, described, the attacks have "stoked a lot of fear and paranoia. People are not leaving their homes." On Thursday night, an Asian man in New York City was stabbed and taken to the hospital in critical condition. The case is being investigated as a possible hate crime.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Summer Meza, The Week US

Summer Meza has worked at The Week since 2018, serving as a staff writer, a news writer and currently the deputy editor. As a proud news generalist, she edits everything from political punditry and science news to personal finance advice and film reviews. Summer has previously written for Newsweek and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, covering national politics, transportation and the cannabis industry.