Why has Vancouver seen a rise in anti-Asian hate crimes? Expert says pandemic not the only factor

The COVID-19 pandemic may have marked a significant increase in anti-Asian hate crimes in Metro Vancouver, but one expert from the University of British Columbia says the Asian community has been blamed for other issues in the past, like housing costs.

John Paul Catungal, an assistant professor at UBC, told CTV Morning Live Tuesday there is a "deep-seated" history of anti-Asian racism across Canada, adding that the Asian community is often scapegoated for a variety of issues.

"I think this is baked into a lot of societal attitudes about the place of people of colour in this country, so it's an easy out. Every time there's a problem, these kinds of scapegoating practices tend to crop up," he said.

"In the last couple of years we've seen the rise of slurs and violent incidents targeting Asian Canadian communities, particularly being blamed for not only the pandemic."

Catungal explained housing and affordability issues in Metro Vancouver have also led to Asians being targeted in hate crimes.

"The kind of blame being placed on foreign communities, so the language of foreignness, designates Asian communities as outside the Canadian nation and Canadian society," he said.

A report from last year suggested Vancouver saw more reported anti-Asian hate crimes in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic than any other city in North America. 

The issue is so significant, it prompted B.C.'s Human Rights Commissioner's Office to focus its first inquiry into hate incidents experienced during the pandemic. As of February, the office had gathered reports from more than 1,700 people. 

To move forward, Catungal said it's important to acknowledge the links between discrimination that different communities face and to support solidarity efforts.

"Listening to communities and paying attention to the real efforts to bring people together, recognizing that there are differences in experiences between communities is really important," he said.

"So supporting organizing efforts, inviting people into decision-making tables, so that the decisions facing our communities get to be part of the agenda for change is really quite necessary."

Catungal's comments were part of a four-minute interview on CTV Morning Live. Watch the full interview in the video player above.