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Morning Briefing: Fighting Back Against Anti-Asian Crime
Tracy Park began writing an illustrated letter as an outlet for her feelings around an encounter with an anti-Asian racist. (Tracy Park)
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Good morning, L.A.
As politicians on the right – including President Trump – continue to blame the coronavirus on Asian countries and people, incidents of anti-Asian hate crimes are spiking in America. Los Angeles is no exception, and one such incident has inspired two women to push back and work to make communities safer for their families and friends.
My colleague Josie Huang has the story of Esther Lim and Hong Lee, who met online after Lee posted the details of a racist verbal assault she suffered. Lim had been making and distributing booklets designed to help older people navigate racist encounters when she read about Lee’s experience, and now the two encourage one another to keep speaking out against bigotry.
Lee, uncomfortable talking about her assault at first, has begun telling her story publicly in order to shed light on the issue.
And after hearing that the first LAPD officer who responded to Lee didn’t file a report because, according to her, he said “there’s no crime here,” Lim was inspired to connect Lee with a different officer – who in turn has promoted better training for law enforcement.
Keep reading for more on what’s happening in L.A. today, and stay safe out there.
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Coming Up Today, October 9
Brian Frank examines lessons learned about systemic racism, and how easily we accept it, after a friend's encounter with police, and how "our heroes got us into this."
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The Past 24 Hours In LA
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Fighting For Equality: Several grassroots efforts to curb anti-Asian bias and violence have emerged in L.A. -- all started by Asian American women. A new UCLA report on the financial implications of creating films with diverse casts and stories focuses on a metric researchers are calling Authentically Inclusive Representation (AIR).
No Rain: It looks like the dry weather pattern known as La Niña is all but certain, with models from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicting an 85% chance that it’ll last through our winter.
Some Personal News: The LAist/KPCC investigative reporting project Stuck has won two Online Journalism Awards from the Online News Association.
Coronavirus In L.A.: New numbers from health officials show that more than 30% of people with COVID-19 in L.A. County are still not participating in contact tracing.
Here’s What To Do: Need a laugh? Head to two virtual comedy festivals. Looking for a scare? Roll up to these Halloween-themed drive-in flicks. Want to sweat? Lace up for a virtual run. They’re all in this week’s best online and IRL events.
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Photo Of The Day
As the Dodgers square off against the Padres in the National League Division Series, Dodger Stadium's parking lot is still being used as a COVID-19 testing site.
(Photo by Frederic J. BROWN / AFP via Getty Images)
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You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
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