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U.S. NEWS Tuesday 17 November 2020
Hate crimes in U.S. reach highest level in more than a decade

By MICHAEL BALSAMO dropped from the year be-
Associated Press fore.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Hate A large number of police
crimes in the U.S. rose to the agencies appeared not
highest level in more than a to submit any hate crime
decade as federal officials data, which has been a
also recorded the highest consistent struggle for Jus-
number of hate-motivated tice Department officials.
killings since the FBI began “The total severity of the im-
collecting that data in the pact and damage caused
early 1990s, according to by hate crimes cannot
an FBI report released Mon- be fully measured without
day. complete participation in
There were 51 hate crime the FBI’s data collection
murders in 2019, which process,” the Anti-Defa-
includes 22 people who mation League’s president,
were killed in a shooting Jonathan Greenblatt, said
that targeted Mexicans at in a statement.
a Walmart in the border An Associated Press inves-
city of El Paso, Texas, the tigation in 2016 found that
report said. more than 2,700 city police
The suspect in that August and county sheriff’s depart-
2019 shooting, which left ments across the country
two dozen other people In the is Oct. 10, 2019 file photo, El Paso Walmart shooting suspect Patrick Crusius pleads not had not submitted a single
injured, was charged with guilty during his arraignment in El Paso, Texas. hate crime report for the
both state and federal Associated Press FBI’s annual crime tally dur-
crimes in what authorities ment officials and advoca- however, rose to 527 in ing of hate crimes. Critics ing the previous six years.
said was an attempt to cy groups don’t doubt that 2019, from 485 in 2018. And have long warned that the Greenblatt also said Amer-
scare Hispanics into leaving hate crimes are on the rise. the total number of hate data may be incomplete, ica must “remove the bar-
the United States. The Justice Department crimes based on a person’s in part because it is based riers that too often prevent
There were 7,314 hate has for years been specifi- sexual orientation stayed on voluntary reporting by people in marginalized
crimes last year, up from cally prioritizing hate crime relatively stable, with one police agencies across the communities – the individu-
7,120 the year before — prosecutions. fewer crime reported last country. als most likely to suffer hate
and approaching the 7,783 The data also shows there year, compared with the Last year, only 2,172 law crimes – from reporting
of 2008. The FBI’s annual was a nearly 7% increase in year before, though there enforcement agencies hate-based incidents,” a
report defines hate crimes religion-based hate crimes, were 20 more hate crimes out of about 15,000 par- sentiment shared by other
as those motivated by bias with 953 reports of crimes against gay men reported. ticipating agencies across advocates.
based on a person’s race, targeting Jews and Jew- As the data was made the country reported hate “The FBI’s report is another
religion or sexual orienta- ish institutions last year, up public on Monday, advo- crime data to the FBI, the reminder that we have
tion, among other catego- from 835 the year before. cacy groups, including the bureau said. much work to do to ad-
ries. The FBI said the number of Anti-Defamation League, And while the number of dress hate in America,”
Some of the 2019 increases hate crimes against African called on Congress and agencies reporting hate said Margaret Huang, the
may be the result of better Americans dropped slightly law enforcement agencies crimes increased, the num- president of the Southern
reporting by police depart- to 1,930, from 1,943. across the U.S. to improve ber of agencies participat- Poverty Law Center.q
ments, but law enforce- Anti-Hispanic hate crimes, data collection and report- ing in the program actually

Corps suspends $9.4B plastics complex permit for review

Army Corps of Engineers view of alternatives to For- five alternatives,” it said.
has suspended its permit mosa’s chosen site near Ascension Parish met
for a Chinese conglomer- Welcome in St. James Par- ozone standards well be-
ate’s $9.4 billion plastics ish, and will now look at fore the permit was ap-
complex on a technicality those sites, according to proved, said the Center
but says it may also review a court document filed Fri- for Biological Diversity,
other aspects of the per- day. which filed the suit for itself,
mit. The Corps had asked U.S. Healthy Gulf, the Louisiana
The notice filed Friday in District Judge Randolph Bucket Brigade and Rise
U.S. District Court in Wash- Moss on Nov. 4 to halt pro- St. James.
ington, D.C., did not men- ceedings so it could re- An earlier Corps document
tion the environmental evaluate the permit. states that by the time the
and environmental justice The Corps said it dismissed Environmental Protection
claims made in a chal- Ascension Parish sites be- Agency had certified the
lenge to the permit for a cause the parish was not entire Baton Rouge metro
In this March 11, 2020, file photo, Myrtle Felton, from left, Sharon complex of 10 chemical expected to meet air qual- area, including Ascension
Lavigne, Gail LeBoeuf and Rita Cooper, members of RISE St. plants and four other ma- ity standards — though it Parish, “sites located in As-
James, conduct a live stream video on property owned by jor facilities. did meet them before the cension Parish had been
Formosa in St. James Parish, La.
Associated Press Rather, the Corps said it permit was granted. eliminated, leaving eight
incorrectly dismissed five “This incorrect information sites in St James and St.
By JANET McCON- Associated Press sites in Ascension Parish does not support the con- John the Baptist Parishes ...
NAUGHEY NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The from its environmental re- clusion to eliminate those for consideration.”q