A bill co-authored by Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., raced through both houses of Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support and is on its way to President Biden’s desk. Biden will sign it, as he should.
The legislation would create a new Justice Department position to speed review of hate crimes, encourage reporting, give grants to law enforcement agencies to better train officers, and roll out public education campaigns to combat anti-Asian bias. All worthwhile, but it bears remembering that though all this is advertised as a partial answer to the bias crimes that have hurt dozens of New Yorkers and left thousands living in fear, what’s fueling attacks here is a more complex and dangerous concoction that includes, in many cases, severe mental illness and chronic criminality.
As a general rule, being mentally ill does not make anyone more dangerous; in fact, the psychologically troubled are more likely to be victimized, not to perpetrate violence. But particular types of mental illness when left to fester can lead people to hurt themselves or others — including engaging in random violence against strangers. Such is the case with anti-Asian hate.
Of the 23 people arrested here for assaulting and harassing Asian Americans since the start of the year, 11 have either admitted to having a diagnosed mental illness or been arrested for a prior act during which their sanity was called into question, according to cops. Joseph Russo, 28, arrested for three such attacks — including pinning a woman to a storefront, shoving an elderly man to the ground and slamming an elderly woman to the pavement — was off his meds.
As Russo’s older brother told The News, “He’s not racist. He’s out there. He’s on Pluto.”
It’s admirable Meng and Biden want to convince Americans to love their neighbors while making it easier for victims to report violence. But what’s fueling most of the rise in anti-Asian violence isn’t some xenophobic propaganda consumed by devils we know, but demons that can only be quelled by anti-psychotic drugs and other interventions.
