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By Greg deGiere, Civil Rights Advocate, The Arc of California
Anti-disability hate crimes are the invisible hate crimes. Police virtually never recognize the widespread crimes against people with disabilities as motivated by hate or other bias, as they usually are, sometimes with acts of extraordinary sadism. In a state with 9 million people with disabilities, California law enforcement agencies reported just seven anti-disability hate crimes in 2020.
That would change dramatically under the Freedom from Hate Crimes Act, Assembly Bill 1947, introduced last week by San Francisco’s great Assemblymember Phil Ting. The Arc-UCP leads a large, diverse network of groups sponsoring and supporting AB-1947-Ting-Hate-Crimes_Final.pdf.
Our bill proposes an extreme solution to the extreme problem of almost universal non-reporting of anti-disability hate crimes. Every crime against a person with a disability would be classed as a suspected hate crime, to be thoroughly investigated, as the bill requires police to investigate all suspected hate crimes.
Officers won’t always find evidence that these crimes are actual hate crimes. But they never find evidence when they don’t look.
The anti-disability hate crime provision is part of a much larger bill sparked by the nationwide crime wave that started against immigrants and Latinos in 2015, surged against Asian Americans 2020 and 2021, and continues to swell in 2022, attacking and traumatizing communities from Black to Jewish to gay and lesbian. Anti-female hate crimes (primarily gender-motivated sexual assaults, and increasingly anti-transgender-woman assaults), have always been grossly under-reported, much like anti-disability hate crimes.
We have a strong author and proven ally of the disability community in Asm. Phil Ting, a strong and diverse support coalition, and a strong, far-reaching bill.
But the fact that the bill is far-reaching also means it won’t be easy to pass. The anti-disability hate crime provision may be particularly hard to sell to some legislators.
Arc chapters, UCP affiliates, and all other disability and wider community groups can add their names to the list of supporters now by simply sending an email to The Arc’s civil rights advocate, Greg deGiere, at [email protected] saying “[name of organization] supports AB 1947.” We’ll let you know when it’s time for support letters and more action, which will be very soon.