Biden urges Congress to pass legislation in response to violence against Asian Americans

President Joe Biden on Friday urged Congress to "swiftly pass" hate crime legislation to address the rise in discrimination and violence against Asian Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act aims to increase Justice Department oversight of coronavirus-related hate crimes, provide support for state and local law enforcement agencies, and make hate crime information more accessible to Asian American communities.

The move comes days after a shooting spree in Georgia that killed eight people, including six Asian women. The president and Vice President Kamala Harris are set to meet with Asian American leaders in Atlanta on Friday.

"While we do not yet know motive, as I said last week, we condemn in the strongest possible terms the ongoing crisis of gender-based and anti-Asian violence that has long plagued our nation," Biden said in a statement.

The endorsement also comes a day after a congressional hearing on violence against Asian Americans, the first in 34 years.

Biden and several lawmakers and activists at the Thursday hearing pressed Congress to pass hate crime legislation introduced by Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., and Sen. Mazie K. Hirono, D-Hawaii, earlier this month.

Agencies