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Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Did most hate crimes against Asian Americans in 2020 occur in New York and California?

By Lisa Freedland
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YES

The majority of hate crimes against Asian American Pacific Islander communities in 2020 occurred in California and New York, which are home to more Asian Americans than any other states. Between March and August, about 46% of Asian American hate crimes occurred in California and 14% in New York, according to a database of racially motivated crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Approximately 1,800 hate crimes against Asian Americans were reported between March and May, after the new coronavirus appeared in Wuhan, China, according to the U.N. Human Rights Council.

Throughout 2020, President Trump called the coronavirus “the Chinese virus.” In January 2021, the Biden administration issued a memorandum condemning intolerance against Asian American Pacific Islanders, claiming the government should acknowledge its role in “furthering these xenophobic sentiments.”

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Stop AAPI Hate Stop AAPI Hate: Stop AAPI Hate national report
White House: Memorandum condemning and combating racism against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
World Population Review: Asian American population by state (2021)
UN Human Rights Council UN Human Rights Council: Mandates of the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism
CNBC: Trump defends calling COVID-19 the ‘Chinese virus’
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.