On March 29, 2021 65-year old Filipina, Vilma Kari, was walking to church when she heard a man yell, “F*** you, Asian. You don’t belong here.” The man attacked Kari, kicking her, stomping on her head multiple times, and eventually fled the scene.

The attack was caught on a building’s surveillance footage. Staff members inside that building purposely closed the door and walked away. They watched the violence happen, and did nothing to help her.

At the time, two other people entered and exited the building, walking past Vilma as she lies motionless on the street.

NYPD later said no one called 911 to report the incident and that patrol officers driving by had come upon Vilma after the assault.

Vilma’s attacker Brandon Elliot was held on two counts of assault as a hate crime and single counts of attempted assault as a hate crime, assault, and attempted assault.

At the time, he pleaded not guilty.

Before this assault, Brandon Elliot was only 19 years old when he stabbed his own mother death in 2022, in her own home. Elliot was on lifetime parole following his release from prison in November 2019, and within 2 years, he then assaulted Vilma Kari.

He has now pleaded guilty to the hate crime.

Since the attack, Vilma Kari and her daughter, Elizabeth Kari, founded AAP(I Belong), which is a safe space to share stories for anyone who’s experience anti-Asian hate. Three years later, Vilma Kari saw her attacker again and delivered her Victim Statement in court on February 21, 2024.

The judge sentenced Mr. Elliot to 15 years in prison. After she detailed her trauma from the event and the years following, she also advocated for more mental health treatment for Mr. Elliot and for prisoners in general. In response, Mr. Elliot apologized to Ms. Kari. She accepted his apology.

Hate crime reports have increased since 2019, but experts believe actual numbers are higher due to under-classification and underreporting, driven by evidence issues, language barriers, and distrust of law enforcement.

Vilma’s case will be one of the few crimes against our community that will be sentenced for what it is - a hate crime.

Stop the Hate Program Funding

The California Government Code § 8260 authorizes the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), in consultation with the Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs (CAPIAA), to administer the Stop the Hate (STH) Program that awards funding to qualified nonprofit organizations to provide support and services to victims and survivors of hate incidents and hate crimes and their families and facilitate hate incident or hate crime prevention measures.
Funded Support and Services may include:

• Direct services for victims and survivors of hate incidents and hate crimes and their families, including mental and complementary health services; wellness and community healing; legal services; navigation, case management, and referrals;

• Prevention services, including arts and cultural work, youth development, senior safety and escort programs, safety planning, training; and cross-racial alliance work; and

• Intervention services, including outreach, training, restorative justice, coordination with local government and institutional partners, and coordinated regional rapid response.

• Resources

• CA vs. Hate:  CA vs. Hate is a way to report hate incidents or hate crimes online or over the phone and receive support and resources without necessarily involving law enforcement.  People who report a hate incident or hate crime through this service will be connected with a professional trained in culturally competent communication and trauma-informed practices.

• California State Library’s Ethnic Media Outreach Grant:  The Ethnic Media Outreach Grant aims to build public awareness of the Stop the Hate Program.  Grants are awarded to ethnic media outlets and collaboratives serving communities that are historically vulnerable to hate incidents and hate crimes.

• California Department of Justice’s Hate Crime Resources Page:  This page provides information on the differences between hate crimes and hate incidents, tips on how to spot a hate crime, and help for what to do if you are the target of a hate crime.

• Stop AAPI Hate’s Community Resources Page:  This page provides resources for mental health, safety tips, and guides to help you know your rights if you are facing discrimination.

• California Attorney General’s 2022 Hate Crime Report:  This report presents statistics on hate crimes reported by California law enforcement agencies that occurred during 2022 with prior years included for context.  These statistics include the reported number of hate crime events, hate crime offenses, victims of hate crimes, and suspects of hate crimes.

• AAPI Equity Alliance’s Resources for the Monterey Park Shootings

• Stop AAPI Hate’s Resources for the Half Moon Bay Shootings