What’s the origin on the initiative?

• Small group of AA lawyers really worried about alarming increase in anti-Asian violence 

• Talking about what we can do 

• Realization that many AA, especially first generation, are particularly vulnerable because of language barriers, unfamiliarity with social support systems and law enforcement communities. 

• Realization that many of leading AA lawyers at large firms have pro bono resources.

  • They can help bridge language and cultural barriers.

  • They are of course deeply familiar with legal services to help navigate client to ensure their rights are protected and enforced.

• Hence the idea for the Alliance.
  

What is the goal?

Protect AA victims. Support them in obtaining a panoply of legal services.

Why was this viewed as necessary?

AA are too often seen as silent victims who are reluctant to pursue their legal remedies.  We hope to change that perception and give AA victims the confidence to do what any other American would feel comfortable doing to protect their rights.

What legal services will we provide?

• Help victims seek compensatory and other civil remedies

• Liaise with law enforcement and be a conduit to ensure that perpetrators are held accountable

• Connect them to social services, like counseling

• If defendant has material assets, hold them accountable through law suits

• Could involve other services too like immigration or getting compensation through local government
  

How will it work?

• We refer each case out to the firms, depending on geography, language skills.

• They then take the case like any other pro bono matter.  They assign teams of associates, and the case proceeds from there.
  

What will the firms do? Who is in control?

• Once assigned to a firm, the clients will be like any other client of a firm: their best interests and their instructions will govern how each case proceeds.   

• Many of the cases may never see the inside of a courtroom, and all the work may be entirely in discussions with law enforcement or with social services.  Each case will be different.
  

Aren’t you concerned that many of the perpetrators are African Americans and that this might be viewed as emphasizing incarceration over remediation?

• Some of the more public videos do show assaults by Black men.  But we have no basis for believing they comprise a majority or even a significant portion of the attacks.

  • Statistics maintained by other organizations suggest the number of Black on Asian crimes are a low percentage of the anti-Asian offense.

  • So, we resist the narrative that could be seen as dividing two communities of color. 

  • Many of our supporters are from the Black community, just as many of us feel very strongly about supporting the Black community.

• Our initiative focuses on the AA victim and the unique goals and wishes of each victim.

  • This has to be without regard to the color of the attacker.

• And as noted, we seek to provide a host of legal services to each victim and liaising with law enforcement to ensure justice is just one, though important, component of it

Are there any kinds of cases that are not accepted by the Alliance?

• Yes, we are focused on violence and threats of violence.

• There are unfortunately many incidents of hateful speech or workplace discrimination.  But these fall outside the mandate of the Alliance.
  

What is a Hate Crime and why is a hate crime charge important?

• Each state and the federal system have slightly different definitions of what constitutes a hate crime.

• As a general matter, though, the laws require a nexus between some feeling or racial bias or prejudice and the violent or otherwise criminal conduct. Most laws require a finding that the prejudice contributed somehow to the act.

• These may sometimes be more difficult to prove but they are important because they enhance the sentence. People who harm others because of racial hate are subjected to higher punishment.

• It’s a reflection of our social commitment to say such hate-fueled acts are just not acceptable has to be deterred by imposing more serious consequences.  
  

What is the role of the new legislation passed by Congress for the work of the Alliance?

• It is an important step in bringing greater and more urgent awareness to anti-Asian violence.  But we do not expect the Alliance efforts to be affected by the legislation.

• It is largely directed at getting the Department of Justice and local and State agencies to get organized and funded so they can enhance reporting of crimes, tracking the cases and instituting guidelines for law enforcement to learn how to deal with them.  
  

How do you see the Alliance working with other Asian organizations and law enforcement?

Closely. Our goal now is to make each of the organizations and agencies aware of the resources that the Alliance can make available. This will lead to more victims who have been affected by violence finding the help they need.