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— Edited by Shawna Chen
The Biden Era
FBI HATE CRIMES DATA PLAGUED BY WORSENING AGENCY PARTICIPATION: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released its annual Hate Crime Statistics earlier this month, which suggested an overall drop in reported hate crimes nationwide from 8,263 in 2020 to 7,262 in 2021.
- Such figures are likely an undercount due to the FBI’s transition to a new data portal last year, which hundreds of law enforcement agencies have been slow to uptake. The 2021 report excludes data from major cities such as Los Angeles and New York, and only shows 73 reported hate crimes in California even though the California Department of Justice reported 1,763 hate crimes in 2021 earlier this year, notes the Los Angeles Times’ Jenny Jarvie.
- In California, anti-Asian hate crimes in particular increased 177% from 89 in 2020 to 247 in 2021, according to the state’s tally. The omission of these trends in federal statistics hinders a more complete picture of the surge in hate crimes from the last few years.
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Who is the Entrepreneur? Asian Entrepreneurship on the Rise
Since 1996, the Kauffman Foundation has tracked entrepreneurial data to understand how it has evolved over time.
Important highlights from 2021 data include a notable shift toward older new entrepreneurs and the rise in the share of new Asian entrepreneurs – from 3.4% in 1996 to 7.3% in 2021.
On The Hill
? UPDATE — CONGRESS AUTHORIZES $1B FOR RED HILL SHUTDOWN: Both the House and the Senate have passed the annual defense spending bill for the fiscal year 2023, the final step in securing $1 billion for the closure of Red Hill, a World War II-era fuel facility that remains a reminder of the U.S.’s colonial legacy. Native Hawaiians have protested the Navy’s delay in shutting down Red Hill since a fuel leak led to a widespread water contamination crisis.
- The Red Hill section of the NDAA, authored by Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawai‘i), also includes funding for a water monitoring program that would evaluate the long-term environmental impact of the storage tank’s leaks. Hirono secured an additional $800 million in funding to upgrade Hawai‘i’s existing military infrastructure to help prevent future crises like the leakage.
- Full circle: Last December, the Hawai‘i delegation requested the Department of Defense open an investigation into water contamination. The U.S. Navy has said it plans to close the bulk fuel storage tank by 2027.
SAYING GOODBYE — MURPHY BIDS FAREWELL TO CONGRESS: Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Florida), who became the first Vietnamese American woman to serve in Congress in 2017, gave her final speech on the House floor last week. The centrist Democrat announced last December that she would not run for re-election.
- In her remarks, Murphy thanked her parents, who fled Vietnam by boat and were rescued by American sailors, for working hard to give her better opportunities. She called on Democrats and Republicans to treat each other with “civility and decency” and warned that “extreme partisanship led to legislative gridlock” during her time in the chamber, forcing communities to pay the price.
- “I want to end with a word to young Americans, including young girls who look like me. I hope you will consider government service. It requires many sacrifices, but the work is important and noble. Our nation needs good people with steady hands to steer the ship of state. People with integrity.”
? WHAT WE'RE WATCHING — MENG REBUKES PURDUE NW CHANCELLOR’S RACIST REMARKS: Rep. Grace Meng (D-New York) condemned Purdue University Northwest Chancellor Thomas L. Keon for mocking Asian languages in a commencement speech last week, calling the racist imitation “offensive and dangerous.”
- “Honestly, I don’t know what is more hurtful. The fact that Chancellor Keon thought his joke was funny, or that many in the audience laughed,” said Meng in a statement after a video of the speech was posted online.
- “Over the past few years, we have seen the evidence of harm that these stereotypical tropes and racist caricatures, even in so-called jest, can perpetuate among our communities,” said Meng, who as vice chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC) has repeatedly urged Congress members to avoid using anti-Asian rhetoric.
- Worth noting: The university initially defended Keon, but the chancellor later posted an apology after the video drew intense criticism online. Faculty members have since demanded that Keon resign, the Post-Tribune’s Michelle L. Quinn writes.
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