by Agnes Constante

January 11, 2017

 

South Asians in the United States experienced a spike in hate violence and rhetoric during the 2016 presidential election similar to levels seen the year following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, according to a report released Wednesday by South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT).

In the report, titled “Power, Pain, Potential,” the non-profit advocacy organization cataloged 207 incidents of hate violence and xenophobic political rhetoric directed toward South Asian, Muslim, Middle Eastern, Hindu, Sikh, and Arab communities between Nov. 15, 2015, and Nov. 16, 2016.

Of the incidents documented, 140 were acts of hate violence while 67 were acts of xenophobic rhetoric. Approximately 95 percent of those instances were animated by anti-Muslim sentiment, according to the report.

“I think that the spike in hate violence really quantifies the level of suspicion and mistrust that many of our community members continue to experience, feel and see on a daily basis,” Suman Raghunathan, executive director of SAALT, told reporters Wednesday during a media conference call.

The report also found that approximately one in five of the documented xenophobic statements came from President-elect Donald Trump. While SAALT is a non-partisan organization that does not endorse political candidates, Raghunathan said the report was crucial at this time, given the nation’s political debate and policies as it moves forward under a new administration.

 

Full article:

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/anti-south-asian-hate-crimes-during-election-mirrored-year-after-n705796