Biden to sign bill aimed at addressing rise in anti-Asian hate crimes
President Joe Biden is scheduled to sign a bill into law on Thursday that’s aimed at countering a rise in anti-Asian hate crimes that’s come during the coronavirus pandemic.
Biden has previously urged Congress to pass the legislation, called the Covid-19 Hate Crimes Act. The bill will create a new position at the Justice Department to expedite review of potential Covid-19-related hate crimes and incidents reported at the federal, state or local level.
It will also direct the Justice Department and Health and Human Services to work with community-based organizations to issue guidance raising awareness of hate crimes during the pandemic, and would require the attorney general to issue guidance to work with state and local law enforcement agencies to establish online reporting of them.