Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a dramatic rise in hate crimes against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders across the country, with New York City reporting an increase of more than 800 percent in 2020. These attacks have been fueled in large part by scapegoating and xenophobic rhetoric spread rapidly through social media. But they are also just the latest in a long—and often overlooked—history of prejudice Asian Americans have faced in our nation.

In this episode, President Clinton sits down with U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY), who recently authored a resolution condemning all forms of anti-Asian bigotry, including as it relates to the coronavirus pandemic. Together, they discuss the factors that are contributing to these crimes, why the coronavirus pandemic is the quintessential crisis to give rise to our ugliest national impulses, and what we can all do to protect members of our communities.

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