Hate crimes down, but cities urged to remain diligent

Deepa Bharath

NEWPORT-MESA -- Hate crimes are down in the county, but that is no

reason for cities such as Costa Mesa and Newport Beach to become

complacent, Orange County Human Relations Commission officials said

Thursday.

The commission’s annual report, released Thursday, showed an 11%

decrease in hate crimes countywide -- from 136 incidents in 1999 to 122

in 2000.

The commission defines a hate crime as any criminal or attempted act

“which is motivated by the victim’s race, ethnicity, religion, sexual

orientation, gender or disability.”

Costa Mesa and Newport Beach were witness to fewer than a handful of

those incidents last year. But even one incident is one too many, said

Rusty Kennedy, executive director of the Orange County Human Relations

Commission.

“Many of these crimes go unreported,” he said. “And it is our

assessment that [Newport Beach and Costa Mesa] have their fair share of

hate-related crimes and incidents.”

Newport Beach police had only two reported incidents -- one of an

African American man assaulted by a white man while riding a bus, and

another involving a man leaving a derogatory message on another’s

answering machine commenting on his sexual orientation.

“It is not a huge problem in this community,” said Newport Beach

Police Sgt. Steve Shulman. But the department does try to spread

awareness about hate crimes and encourages people to report incidents.

The community in Costa Mesa was shocked in October when vandals

spray-painted swastikas and lightning bolts on the walls of Yellowstone

Women’s Recovery Homes, a shelter for recovering alcoholics.

It was, however, the city’s only reported incident.

The last five years have seen an increase in hate-related vandalism

but a decrease in violent hate crimes, said Kennedy.

However, the changing demographics of Costa Mesa and Newport Beach

make these communities vulnerable to hate crimes, he said.

“They are changing from a white, suburban community to areas with a

lot of diversity,” said Kennedy.

For example, Newport Harbor High School sees a mingling of Latino

students from a lower economic strata as well as students from wealthy

Newport Beach.

“If you look at the beach, there is an increasing immigrant

population,” he said. “And these are successful people, entrepreneurs.”

The best way to guard against hate crimes, said Kennedy, is for

communities to be aware and “become more tolerant and appreciative of

each other’s diversity.