By Sterling Davies
Contributing Writer
SACRAMENTO — Black media outlets can play a unique and powerful role in curbing the growing hate against ethnic populations across California, state Attorney General Rob Bonta told a group of civic activists this week.
“Sometimes people know they have a problem, but they don’t know who to turn to, where to go, and [ethnic] media could be a source of very treasured and valuable resources,” Bonta said Aug. 27 at the 26th Ethnic Media Conference, Expo and Awards.
The event was presented by California Black Media and Ethnic Media Services, bringing together news outlets throughout the state that serve minority communities, including Black, Asian and Pacific Islanders, Latino, Native American, Middle Eastern, Afro-Caribbean, Eastern European, and LGBTQ+.
During the conference, Bonta shared how the trust between ethnic media outlets and the community they serve opens the door for people to share their stories.
“Folks will report a hate crime to someone they trust, or if there’s not someone they trust, they’re not reporting,” he said. “Many [ethnic media outlets] with [their] audiences and those who follow have built that trust.”
Bonta is working toward permanent changes to reduce hate crimes and, with ethnic media, wants to spread education and resources to a wider audience.
“We want to address, through education, hate incidents before they become hate crimes and provide intervention at that level,” he said. “That’s another place where the resources can be shared through the ethnic media.”
Bonta was one of several speakers taking part in panels and discussions highlighting the power and sense of connection ethnic media creates within its communities. Tony Thurmond, California’s superintendent of public instruction and the conference’s keynote speaker, shared the impact he’s witnessed ethnic media have across California.
Thurmond, California’s first Afro-Latino Superintendent, spoke about the work the Department of Education has done to better the education system across the state including promoting early-age literacy, guaranteed two meal plans within schools and various scholarships for educators and teachers.
Thurmond also spoke about plans for the state as well.
“I announced our plan to build 2.3 million units of housing just by building on the surplus property that our school districts already own,” he said.
While highlighting those achievements and advancements, Thurmond noted that it becomes important these announcements reach all of California’s communities by way of ethnic media.
“We have stories that are worth telling that are not just about getting people to click, and I have confidence that ethnic media can help us to get to those stories of quality,” he said.
Thurmond’s thoughts on the power behind ethnic media were echoed throughout other panels at the conference, specifically those discussing issues of hate crimes.
The Stop the Hate Program, an initiative that provides support for victims of hate crimes and also gives funding to nonprofit organizations that serve communities at greater risk of hate crimes, held multiple panels on how hate crimes should be addressed on both a state and community level and ethnic media’s role in this matter.
The Stop the Hate program originated from a rise in hate crimes throughout the nation. In 2021, the California Department of Social Services allocated $110 million over three years to tackle hate crimes in communities prone to those forms of violence. While the organization first addressed hate against Asian and Pacific Islanders, the program has expanded to incorporate hate crimes targeting all minority groups.
Karthick Ramakrishnan, a public policy researcher at UC Berkeley and founder and director of Asian and Pacific Islander data, spoke on the need for hate crimes to be stopped especially in African American populations.
“What our survey results show is that yes, there was an increase in hate facing Asian communities [in 2021], but some of the highest levels of hate then and now are with Black populations and also with multiracial populations,” he said.
Ethnic media holds the ability to connect and foster trust, and the conference highlighted how to use that trust to better empower minority communities and minimize hate.
“Young kids don’t grow up hating,” Charles Jackson, founder and publisher of Los Angeles-based magazine City Pride said.
Jackson, who attended the conference, explained the need for Black media to provide for their communities and create change.
“When it’s going to damage somebody, it’s time to stop,” he said. “We have to move forward and bring attention to this. … That’s why I came. I want to be able to spread the word about it.
Sterling Davies is a freelance reporter for Wave Newspapers.
This resource was supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library via California Black Media as part of the Stop the Hate Program. The program is supported by partnership with California Department of Social Services and the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs as part of the Stop the Hate program. To report a hate incident or hate crime and get support, go to CA vs Hate.
