New York now requires those convicted of hate crimes to undergo hate crime prevention training

Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) signed two new bills on Tuesday, including one that requires those convicted of hate crime charges in New York City to undergo hate crime prevention training and counseling.

In Tuesday’s announcement, Hochul’s office explained that the first bill, Assembly Bill A1202, would require New Yorkers convicted of hate crime charges to undergo mandatory training and counseling on top of their sentences.

The second bill, Assembly Bill A5913A, aims to establish a statewide campaign to promote acceptance, inclusion, tolerance and understanding of diversity. New York’s Division of Human Rights will reportedly take charge of the campaign.

Hochul’s announcement came days after a 22-year-old gunman killed five people and injured over 25 others at an LGBTQ-plus nightclub called Club Q in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Saturday night.

New York City has seen waves upon waves of hate crime incidents from the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to recent months.

On Oct. 31, an Asian student at Proctor High School in Utica was stabbed multiple times by his classmate. Days before that, four men were arrested for a string of robberies targeting homes owned by Asian Americans in Westchester County.

A few months ago, two women, a Thai model and an Indigenous Filipino nurse, were attacked while in a New York subway. The two incidents occurred in July and in August. Earlier this year, a 40-year-old woman was shoved in front of an oncoming train at the Times Square-42nd Street subway station in what authorities described as an unprovoked attack.

“No Asian woman of any age coming home from work should ever worry about where they stand on a subway platform,” Hochul said at a press conference. “No young Jewish boy should ever have to look over his shoulder as he is walking into a yeshiva. No trans man or woman should ever have to fear for their safety or their life.”

Hochul also announced a deadline extension for community-based organizations to apply for New York City’s Securing Communities Against Hate Crimes Program. The state allotted $50 million to help fund the chosen organization for new security equipment and training to prevent hate crimes in the city. The new deadline has been pushed to Feb. 23, 2023.

Featured Image via Governor Kathy Hochul

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