San Francisco endured a major surge in anti-Asian hate crimes from 2020 to 2021, with the number of reported victims rising from nine to 60, an increase of more than 500 percent, according to preliminary data released by the police department Tuesday. A single man allegedly targeted more than half the 60 victims. Mayor London Breed said she believes actual number of incidents is higher, given the often low likelihood of reporting them. As the coronavirus pandemic has raged on, alleged anti-Asian hate crimes have spiked across the country, often tied to a misguided belief that Chinese-Americans bear some responsibility for the virus. The Stop AAPI Hate coalition, based in San Francisco, recorded more than 10,000 incidents nationwide between March 2020 and September 2021.
