What’s Really Behind Anti-Asian Hate Crime Rise

In urban population centers such as New York and San Francisco, the pandemic has wrought not only the first-order effects of the disease itself, but also broader symptoms of social unrest and disrepair. Crime — and violent crime — is on the upswing after a mostly uninterrupted decades-long decline.

More disturbing still has been a notable increase in hate crimes. Between January 1 and May 2, the New York Police Department (NYPD) recorded 180 reported hate crimes; that compares most unfavorably with the 104 reported at this point last year. Much of this surge is attributable to a significant rise in the number of crimes committed against Asian Americans in particular. They were targets of 80 such crimes between the start of the year and April 4. In 2020, there were were only 16 reported in that same timeframe.

About the Author

Isaac Schorr

Isaac Schorr is an editor at Mediaite and a 2023–2024 Robert Novak Journalism Fellow at the Fund for American Studies.

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In urban population centers such as New York and San Francisco, the pandemic has wrought not only the first-order effects of the disease itself, but also broader symptoms of social unrest and disrepair. Crime — and violent crime — is on the upswing after a mostly uninterrupted decades-long decline.

More disturbing still has been a notable increase in hate crimes. Between January 1 and May 2, the New York Police Department (NYPD) recorded 180 reported hate crimes; that compares most unfavorably with the 104 reported at this point last year. Much of this surge is attributable to a significant rise in the number of crimes committed against Asian Americans in particular. They were targets of 80 such crimes between the start of the year and April 4. In 2020, there were were only 16 reported in that same timeframe.