Joe Biden signs bill addressing hate crimes against Asian-Americans

NEW YORK: US President Joe Biden signed a bill on Thursday meant to address a proliferation of assaults and other crimes against Asian-Americans since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Biden and Vice-President Kamala Harris thanked Democratic and Republican lawmakers for joining together to pass the legislation. “This bill brings us one step closer to stopping hate, not just against Asian-Americans, but for all Americans,” Harris said.
The law passed by a vote of 94 to 1 in the Senate and 364 to 62 in the House. “My message to all those of you who are hurting is, we see you. And we are committed to stopping the hatred and the bias,” said Biden. Over the last year, more than 6,600 anti-Asian hate incidents have been recorded nationwide, according to the nonprofit Stop AAPI Hate.
The measure will establish a position at the justice department to speed the agency’s review of hate crimes and expand the channels to report them. It will help in creation of hate crimes hotlines and provide grants to law enforcement agencies that train their officers to identify hate crimes.