Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into a law a new measure Tuesday that forces any college or university that receives funding from Albany to investigate and publicize campus hate crime statistics online.
The bill was written by a pair of Queens Democrats after Queens College was besieged by a number of antisemitic and racially charged incidents last year.
In January of 2022, a swastika and the words “KKK LIVES” were found scrawled on a public bulletin board on the anniversary of the Capitol riots.
Months later, a college official allegedly used a racial slur to refer to the school’s Asian-American president before a man showed up to the campus and berated students with profane antisemitic rhetoric over a bullhorn on multiple occasions.
“I want every single college to have to adopt and implement these programs so every single student when they leave the security of their home, feels just as secure on a college campus,” Hochul said.
The measure was signed into law at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in Manhattan’s Battery Park, at a ceremony that was attended by 89-year-old Holocaust survivor Toby Levy.
The governor also noted that New York — the most Jewish state in the US by far — had seen antisemitic hate crimes double in recent years, with one occurring every 33 hours, on average.
“Barely a day goes by when someone is not subjected to this,” she said.
“Last year we hit numbers we’ve not seen in decades, and I’m not proud to say it was the highest number in the nation,” the Democrat continued.
“This is New York, we’re better than that. We’re better than that.”
The overall uptick in hate crimes — including the 2022 Buffalo supermarket massacre, in which ten people were slaughtered by a white supremacist who had driven for hours to shoot black people — spurred the governor to announce $51 million in security grants that will be used to protect places of worships and community centers.
“I want people know when you gather there … you’re going to be okay,” Hochul said.
“New York has always always symbolized … a beacon of hope and acceptance and tolerance. And we want to make sure that continues to be the story associated with New York State.”