City Council Holds Public Hearing On Crimes Targeting Asian Businesses
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Scores of Asian business owners took over Philadelphia City Council Monday for a hearing to deal with the recent wave of home invasions and armed robberies targeting the Asian community.
They sat quietly in the audience, but their t-shirts and protest signs spoke their words, reading: "stop armed robberies in our community."
Asians make up less than 5 percent of the city's population, but over the past two years they're the victim of 16% of the robberies and home invasions.
Through a translator, Lifang Li spoke of the trauma of harassment, vandalism and robberies at her North Philadelphia take out.
"We are often abused and feel the victims of racial discrimination," she said.
They claim police response is slow; and 70 percent of Asian business owners say they feel unsafe. Michael Yang's says his Wynnefield properties have been burglarized 22 times in three years.
"I feel shocked, disappointed, even helpless," he said.
Police have tracked down more than a half-dozen crews. Yongzhu Yu owns a Chinese take-out in North Philadelphia. Robbers broke into her home above her restaurant, terrorizing her young children, making off with $10,000.
Philadelphia Police Lieutenant John Walker says crews target Asian businesses because they believe they have cash and don not use banks, even using GPS devices to follow them home.
But he says they must do more to communicate.
"We need to get information out quicker," Walker said.
He says police want to tackle language barriers and push for more safety education in the Asian community.
