Norfolk County DA To Host Forum On Anti-Asian Racism

DEDHAM, MA — Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrissey will host a forum about rising Anti-Asian American hate in the country and state.

The virtual forum will be from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. on March 23 and include Representative Tackey Chan, QARI CEO Philip Chong, local activists and area police chiefs. The forum comes after a shooting in Atlanta left eight people dead, six of whom were Asian women.

“Some in the Asian American community are nervous. They hear the hateful misinformation and rhetoric that has circulated nationally related to COVID,” District Attorney Morrissey said. A study from California State University at San Bernardino said that anti-Asian American incidents increased by about 150% since the beginning of the COVID crisis, and 133 percent in Boston.

"With more schools moving toward the return of full-time, in-person classes, there are parents nervous for their kids,” District Attorney Morrissey said. “I will be joined in this forum by the police chiefs in Wellesley, Brookline, Needham, Dover and Quincy. We want to answer questions from the community, and also to hear local concerns and what more local law enforcement can do to help.”

The current and former chief of Civil Rights prosecution for Norfolk County, current Assistant District Attorney Peter Tilley and former chief Grace Lee, a Brookline activist and board member of the Asian American Task Force on Domestic Violence, will be making short presentations before to the question period.

Dover Police Chief Peter McGowan, Needham Chief John Schlittler, Wellesley Chief Jack Pilecki, Brookline Police Chief Mark Morgan, and Quincy Police Chief Paul Keenan will be available for questions from people in their communities.

The event will be simulcast on the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office Facebook page and YouTube channel, NORFOLKDATV.

For the Zoom link, submit questions in any language, or request simultaneous translation to a specific language, email Quincy Asian Resources’ CEO at philip@quincyasianresources.org. Submit questions in any language as soon as possible to allow time for translation. Live translation will be provided for as many requested languages as possible.

“The presentations from the hosts, the chiefs, and speakers will be very brief,” District Attorney Morrissey said. “Our central objective here is to listen, to learn, and to reassure the Asian American community that we recognize what is happening and we want to help.”