Amid a dramatic rise in hate crimes against ethnic groups in California, one lawmaker seeks to create a special intervention unit to directly address those incidents.

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If signed into law, the Combat Hate Crimes proposal would create a Hate Crimes Intervention Unit inside California’s Department of Public Health.

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The legislation, Assembly Bill 1079, would also establish a special ad council to create anti-racism campaigns to raise awareness, plus promote understanding and respect for people from all walks of life.

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AB 1079’s author Assemblyman Corey Jackson, D-Riverside, told The Sacramento Bee his proposal would create partnerships between state officials, community leaders and organizations to provide alternatives and intervention strategies in communities where hate crimes have occurred.

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Jackson said AB 1079 would implement a plan of action to mobilize those community and state partnerships to respond when a hate crime has been confirmed by the Department of Justice.

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“Anytime we begin to see excessive violence or rhetoric to an event, it usually leads to inciting violence against people based upon race, creed, color, religion, orientation, all of these things,” Jackson said. “We have nothing systemically in place right now to be able to counter those narratives.”

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AB 1079 is just one among a series of anti-racism bills recently introduced by Jackson — proposals he believes will help make Californians feel safe, respected and valued in an equitable, inclusive society.

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Under the proposed legislation, the newly-established California Ad Council would create campaigns similar to the ‘Love Has No Labels’ campaign created by the national nonprofit Ad Council in 2015.

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“The California Ad Council is designed to make sure that our children and that society as a whole begins to see more narrative change when it comes to more positivity,” said Jackson.

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The campaigns would be directly proportional and targeted to combat the percentage of hate crimes committed against each group, Jackson said.

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Data shows recent rise

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According to State Department of Justice data, California in 2021 saw an increase in hate crimes which grew by 32% from 1,330 in 2020 to 1,763 in 2021.

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Hate crimes against Black people increased by 12.5% in the same timeframe. Crimes motivated by a person’s sexual orientation rose from 205 incidents in 2020 to 303 in 2021, a 47% increase, according to the Department of Justice.

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Anti-Asian bias events rose by 177%, from 89 in 2020 to 247 in 2021. And anti-Hispanic or Latino bias events grew to 29% from 152 in 2020 to 197 in 2021.

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Hate crimes based on religion, including anti-Jewish bias events increased by 32% in 2021, the data says.

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“The bill seeks to do two things, institutionalize anti-racist practices within the system of the state,” Jackson said. “But (also) making sure that the state is involved in shaping that narrative against (hate).”

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Recent reports in California

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The legislation comes at a time when hate crimes and similar acts of violence have happened in California, some just within recent months.

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Earlier this year, racist flyers were found on the sidewalks and driveways of a Folsom neighborhood, according to Folsom Police Department.

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In another incident, last week five people were arrested after a series of bombings that began Dec. 13 in Fresno. According to Fresno Police Chief Paco Balderrama, a task force of local police and FBI agents found bomb-making components, firearms, methamphetamine and white supremacist paraphernalia, including Nazi flags.

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Additionally, on Wednesday two supporters of former President Donald Trump were sent to prison for their plans to bomb the Democratic Party headquarters in downtown Sacramento.

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Jackson added he wants to do more than speak out or offer thoughts and prayers when such incidents happen.

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“This (bill) is an accumulation of everything that we’ve been living through,” Jackson said. “This is timely because we know when 2024 comes this rhetoric is going to happen again and we need systems in place to be able to combat these things.”

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In terms of fiscal impacts, the Department of Justice will determine the cost of the unit and to submit a budget change proposal no later than Sep. 15 next year for inclusion in the governor’s 2025–26 budget proposal, according to the bill.