SANTA ANA, Calif. (CNS) — Orange County supervisors Tuesday approved two resolutions condemning racism and to spend $126,000 to continue a contract with the Orange County Human Relations Council. 

Orange County Board Chairman Andrew Do's resolution declared a "commitment to action against racism" as it suggested a "re-examination of policies and practices that have a discriminatory impact" and pledges to "work with law enforcement agencies to promote better handling and documentation of incidents," and improve "training and accountability" of law enforcement on "de-escalation strategies."

Orange County Supervisor Lisa Bartlett's resolution more specifically condemned anti-Asian bigotry, which has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, but also repudiated all forms of prejudice.

Bartlett's resolution also commits to working with law enforcement to more doggedly pursue hate crimes and to have the OC Human Relations Commission, the county's agency which works with the nonprofit OC Human Relations Council, to publish monthly data on hate crimes and incidents.

The supervisors emphasized the resolutions were not competing measures.

"It is really disturbing when you see the statistics out there," Bartlett said of the rash of anti-Asian incidents since the pandemic began last year.

"As a county we do need to take a stand. So as leaders we need to do whatever we can to get the message out there, get things resolved and to help calm the waters."

In addition to extending the commission's contract with the Human Relations Council with $126,000, Bartlett said she intended to ask the board to consider awarding more money to the council in the coming weeks.

"With the bandwidth of what they have right now I don't know how they're covering all the bases, so we'll be looking at things to bring back" to the board at a later date, Bartlett said.

Norma Lopez of the Human Relations Council told the supervisors that hate incidents or crimes against Asian Americans since 2010 through 2018 averaged about three per year until the pandemic.

"The preliminary data shows there's been a 10-fold increase in hate incidents and crimes against Asian Americans in Orange County," Lopez said. "The majority of documented hate incidents are due to harassment in public spaces."

Bartlett said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer told her that his office has prosecuted more hate crimes in the last two years than in the last 20.

"Hate has existed for so long in our county and we have been effective in stomping it out," Spitzer said.

Spitzer said there appears to be more reluctance within the Asian American community to report hate incidents, so the authorities need to assure members of that community that they will be "protected as a witness" and a victim.

"What scares me most is under reporting," Spitzer said. "That means people don't feel they have a voice in our country. They don't feel they will be listened to and we won't take victimization seriously."

Do said the under-reporting of incidents is common.

"I can share with you my own personal experience coming here as an immigrant my community never once looked to the school district or to law enforcement as a resource," Do said.

"There was nothing to discourage us from doing that. It just never entered our mind. Coming from a certain background there's a distrust that may exist of government or authority."

Do cited several police-involved killings such as George Floyd that have sparked dialogue about systemic racism.

"Over the past four years and since the start of the pandemic, inflammatory, racist language used by our elected officials and amplified on social media has led to an increase in crimes directed against Asian, Black, Latino, Indigenous, Middle Eastern, and other people," Do said.

"This culminated over the past few months in the rising crescendo of attacks on Asians in particular — including, but by no means limited to, murder on the streets of San Francisco, and in the spas of Atlanta." 

Do quoted former President Barack Obama that no one should feel frightened to do mundane tasks such as grocery shopping or exercising.

"We must recognize that words and thoughts, which give credence to preconceptions, stereotypes, and unfounded fears, can easily become actions," Do said.

Do said one of the resolutions the board approved "focuses on hate crimes in our community and beyond," while the other "asks us to look inward, at policies and practices that we control, and to take action to confront potential biases within our own government."

Do said the two resolutions "complement each other."

Supervisor Doug Chaffee agreed and said that it was important for county officials to also "recognize the contributions" of minorities who "have made our society better. It works toward more acceptability of everyone if we do that."

Supervisor Don Wagner said racists are "idiots," and added, "there should be zero tolerance of idiocy in this country."