Arizona Hate Crimes Surge to Highest Level Since 2001; Mayes has a Plan; Brnovich does Not

Hate Crimes in Arizona, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (F.B.I.) have surged to their highest levels since 2001.

In 2020, there were 282 hate crimes in the Grand Canyon State, up from 209 in 2019.

Increases in these heinous acts occurred among Caucasians, African Americans, Latinos, Asians, Jews, and members of the LGBTQ Community.

The same unfortunate increase is true for the nation as a whole with 8,305 acts committed against racial and religious minorities.

How did Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich react to this latest report?

While Mr. Brnovich and his office found time to issue press releases condemning the vaccine mandate for city employees in Tucson and Joe Biden’s immigration and pandemic policies, there was not one word commenting on the increase in violent crime towards Arizona’s most persecuted.

What kind of public servant is that? He comments against policies designed to promote public safety and is mute on supporting victims of high crimes.

Readers must wonder if Brnovich really cares about the public safety part of his job.

Democratic Candidate for Attorney General Kris Mayes does care and has something to say about the rise of hate crimes in Arizona. She also has ideas on what to do if she is elected to that office in 2022.

Ms. Mayes commented,

“The increase in the frequency of hate crimes in Arizona is very troubling and it demands action by the current and next Attorney General. Every Arizonan deserves to feel safe and to have the freedom to pursue their education, their work, and their dreams in a secure and hate-free environment.

When I am elected Attorney General, I will do the following to combat hate crimes:

First, I will direct my Civil Rights Division to make prosecution of hate crimes a priority. Second, I will convene a task force that will assist County Attorneys across the state of Arizona in addressing hate crimes, collecting statistics about hate crimes, and making recommendations to the state legislature and Governor about legislation to address this issue in a systemic way. Third, I will speak out publicly and regularly about the need to combat the rise in hate crimes, to grow awareness of what constitutes a hate crime, and to ensure that those who would perpetuate hate crimes understand it won’t be tolerated in Arizona.”

All people should be able to live safely in society without having to worry about becoming victimized because of the color of their skin or the faith they follow.

They should also expect their public servants to take the subject more seriously and act on reducing the level of hate crime violence in the state rather than devoting time to working on issues that satisfy the Know-Nothing-science denying-white nationalist fringe base of one’s political party.