Legislators in the Minnesota Asian and Pacific Caucus put an anti-hate crime bill at the top of their agenda unveiled Monday and answered all-too-familiar questions about the mass shooting during a Lunar New Year celebration in California.
Recently elected caucus chair Ethan Cha of Woodbury began the Capitol news conference with a moment of silence for the victims of the weekend shooting. Rep. Samantha Sencer-Mura of Minneapolis, who is sponsoring the hate crime bill, described speaking with "an extremely heavy heart."
While little has been revealed about the 72-year-old Asian man who allegedly shot and killed 11, the sense of fear and dread is familiar for members of the community, Sencer-Mura said. She cited anti-Asian backlash related to COVID-19's origins and the 2021 spa shootings in Atlanta where six of the victims were of Asian descent.
"Our communities are living in this state of red alert," Sencer-Mura said. "That's the state our community has been living in for the last few years."
She said the hate crime bill would provide money to better track bias crimes and train law enforcement in dealing with victims.
In unveiling their agenda, Sencer-Mura and the other nine members of the caucus, all Democrats, talked about how issues such as education, poverty and financial support for nonprofits are intertwined and can give rise to violence and hate within and targeting the Asian American community.
"White supremacy is here and it's something we have to fight," said Rep. Liz Lee of St. Paul.
Other bills prioritized by the caucus include increasing the per-student funding amount for English language learners from $704 to $1,000 and requiring that school curriculums include ethnic studies providing accurate versions of history. Two additional bills would provide support for culturally specific nonprofits and the health and wellness of veterans who are of Asian and Pacific Island descent.
