President Joe Biden condemned the violence against Asian Americans in his first prime-time address, The New York Times reports. The address also marked one year since the World Health Organization declared the spreading of the COVID-19 virus a pandemic.
Biden condemned the “vicious” hate Asian Americans have faced, saying that Asians Americans are being unfairly “attacked, harassed, blamed and scapegoated.”
“They’re forced to live in fear for their lives just walking down streets in America,” President Biden said. “It’s wrong. It’s un-American, and it must stop.”
Within the last year hate crimes have decreased overall, but hate crimes against Asian Americans have increased by 150 percent in major cities, according to NBC News.
This is not the first time the Biden administration has spoken out against the hate Asian Americans are facing. In January, President Biden signed a memorandum denouncing hate and discrimination against Asian and Pacific Islander Americans.
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