San Gabriel Valley Police Chief John Perez called for the cooperation of police and citizens to protect the safety of the community. On April 20, 2020, a convoy of about 30 San Gabriel Valley police and fire trucks lit up their lights to show their appreciation to the medical staff of San Gabriel Hospital who are fighting the “Chinese Communist virus” at the first line.
In response to recent media reports of hate crimes and racial discrimination against Asians, San Gabriel Valley Police Chief John Perez, one of the nation’s largest Chinese communities, said there has been no increase in local hate crimes against Asians, but that the current trend is causing fear in the community. He pledged to increase interaction between police and the community to prevent and reduce safety risks. He also urged the public to remain calm, reject divisive propaganda, oppose misinformation, and distinguish between facts and distorted reports.
The San Gabriel Valley is a region with a high concentration of Asian Americans, with as many as 24 police chiefs in each city alone. Perez, who is Pasadena’s police chief and president of the San Gabriel Valley Police Chiefs Association, began by condemning any hate crimes and racist bigotry.
Hate crimes have not increased in the past three and a half years
We condemn any acts of hate and bigotry in our community,” the San Gabriel Valley Police Chiefs Association said in a statement recently. In response to recent reports, we are committed to protecting the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community by opposing misinformation, fostering empathy, and holding accountable those who cause fear and harm in our community. We also call on everyone to come together and (if they encounter issues such as hate crimes or racial discrimination) to immediately report such incidents to their local police department.”
Perez believes that addressing community safety issues needs to be approached factually and from the ground up in order to truly remove the fear from the hearts of the people. Close cooperation between the police and the public is what will ensure the safety of residents.
Using the report as an example, he said, “We have a hate crime report that we track on an ongoing basis, and there have been roughly 12 similar crimes in the last three and a half years. We are also closely watching for threats or hate crimes against Asian and Pacific Islanders and have seen no signs of an increase.”
Call the police department if you have a problem
There are two very important issues in the community that are currently causing him alarm: “One is the level of public fear (that is increasing); and the second is the willingness of people to call their local police department for help when they are in trouble. Maybe it’s the language barrier that makes people reluctant to call the police.”
“We always teach people to feel comfortable calling the police when they have a problem. We don’t ask about your immigration status and we don’t do enforcement in that regard, we just help you.” Perez said, “But in the back of people’s minds, there’s always an invisible fear that maybe because some people used to live in countries where their law enforcement or government was not open, people are often reluctant to call the police.”
Because of that, he said many chiefs are concerned about the current format, “We need to make sure that people are willing to contact us when they have a problem and know what we’re doing. That’s why all of our chiefs communicate once a week to find out what the people in the community are concerned and worried about.”
So what can people do to keep themselves and their families safe in the right way if they encounter a hate crime, racial discrimination or other issues?
Perez suggests, “Number one is that it’s very important for everyone to have the phone number of their local police department on their cell phone. Set the first number in your address book to the police department number so that you can always report incidents on your cell phone.”
“Second, regardless of the size of the incident, if it causes you distress and you want to know how to resolve it, call the police at any Time. Don’t judge the size of the incident on your own, call us directly and let us judge it, let us handle it, let us help you.” He said, “It’s not just concerns about hate crimes in question; Asian, Latino, and Pacific Islander residents need to understand that calling the police should be a routine operation and should not just wait for an emergency to call the police.”
For example, he described how if people see things like people always gathering in groups on the street, drinking alcohol, or playing Music very loud, once they report it to the police, the police are on record. Maybe no action will be taken in the moment, but it will allow the police to keep a close eye on and prevent something bad from happening. “If one day these people do something to the community and the people call the police, (we) can respond quickly, so it becomes important that the people report to us.”
On March 16, eight people were killed in a massage parlor shooting in Atlanta, Jo. On March 24, prominent radio host Dennis Prager wrote in the Epoch Times that the left has hyped the Atlanta shooting as a white supremacist crime against Asian-Americans and The purpose of the massive campaign across the United States is to divide the community and incite hatred against America.
Calling on the public to be calm
According to Perez, some of the current inaccurate news and reports have increased the level of tension between the police and the public, and are one of the reasons for the current increase in unease and fear among the community. “Certain media outlets are distorting the facts and fanning the flames to make things worse, and we need to make sure we separate (facts from distorted propaganda).”
He believes that the relationship between the police and the public relies on mutual respect and understanding between people of all ethnicities and the elimination of cultural differences. “If you don’t like some of the services of the police, you can call and complain, you have that right, you have the absolute right. I will listen (to everyone), and so will the police chiefs of the San Gabriel Valley.” “Community law enforcement, it only works best when there’s a real connection between the community and the police department.”
Perez, who has 35 years of law enforcement experience, said that decades ago, people saw police officers on the street in a relationship where they greeted each other. “Children would also be taught to say a friendly hello when they saw a police officer. When there is that relationship on both sides, people will see that we are no different than you.”
“Sometimes we find that there are people who try to play into it, and we do see that. We have to work hard to fend off those who try to divide those two groups (police and community), and even propagate claims such as saying that police are the root cause of the problems that arise, and we have to fight back. Our law enforcement, which is done with the consent of the community, should not be done with what some small group says or agrees to.”
Next, Perez said, police will also hold more events in the San Gabriel Valley area to promote interaction between the Asian community and police, and to better help Asians to better seek help from police when they encounter problems.
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