Yet despite the scale and staying power of the hate crime problem, New York City’s leadership seems uncertain about confronting it. Nor are the offenders themselves restricted to one borough or ethnicity. Jewish New Yorkers are most often targeted, but, as the data I review in my report show, Black, Asian, Muslim, gay and even white New Yorkers make up a sizable percentage of victims. Offending is not restricted to one group. Other types of crime have declined dramatically since the early 1990s, but hate crimes are close to where they were in that period. While the past few years have been particularly bad, New York’s hate crime problem is longstanding. Members and supporters of Asian American and Pacific Islander communities listen to speakers during a rally, Wednesday March 16, 2022, in New York, to remember the victims a year after the fatal shootings at three Georgia massage businesses and denounce anti-Asian violence that has risen sharply in recent years.
