In Los Angeles, a Korean American woman created a hate crime booklet for Asian American seniors. This is to prepare them in case of racially targeted assault. Esther Lim got the idea during the pandemic after the former president, Donald Trump uses the term ‘China Virus’ followed by a rise in anti-Asian crimes in the country. She noticed most of the crimes target Asian senior citizens, so Lim put together a booklet on April 2020 ‘How to Report a Hate Crime’. It mostly started to keep her parents safe.
“I noticed that a lot of the target victims were older generation Asians who couldn’t speak English well,” Lim, 32, told CNN. “I wanted to make sure my parents, and the rest of the Asian community, knew how to make a report or what to do if they’re attacked.”
The book is available in seven languages – English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, and Spanish – by March 2021. The booklets are free and available for download online. At least 4,500 people have got their hands on her booklets in person and thousands more downloaded. The 15 pages long booklet provides info on legal rights and what to do when facing an attack.
After the mass shooting in Atlanta last week, the booklet is needed more than ever. They also include key phrases for non-English speakers like “Someone is following me.” and “Can you stay next to me until it is safe?”
Lim commented on the authority’s actions regarding this issue. “We can keep talking about racism, but what solutions are we bringing out to individuals who need it?” she said. “I just wanted to do something more effective on my own to help the community. I did what I had to do.”