Santa Ana Officials Discuss Classifying Attacks on Street Vendors as Hate Crimes

Street vendors sell food items in Santa Ana, Calif., on July 18, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

As attacks on street vendors have reportedly increased, Santa Ana officials discussed July 20 passing a resolution that would classify them as hate crimes in the city.

A hate crime is a criminal act committed because of perceived characteristics of the victim, including disability, race, gender, religion, or sexual orientation, according to state law. When a case is classified as one, the perpetrator can receive harsher penalties in court.

The issue was introduced by Santa Ana City Councilman Jonathan Hernandez, who told The Epoch Times that he wanted to create this law after seeing a recent increase in reported street vendor attacks in nearby Los Angeles.

Los Angeles street vendor robberies have since doubled this time last year—from 9 in July 2021 to 18 in July 2022—while robberies have increased 20 percent citywide, according to the city’s police department.

“This is a public safety issue and I also believe that this is an issue of discrimination,” Hernandez said.

Santa Ana Police Department has not released data on recent street vendor robberies, and did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The department’s latest data show robberies decreasing, reporting 329 last year—down 18 percent from the previous year.

Hernandez said vendor robberies occur in Santa Ana, but many go unreported since some vendors are operated by illegal immigrants and don’t have a vendor permit required by Orange County.

But he said he wants to have the “hate crime” classification apply to vendors regardless of their immigration status or vendor permits.

While Hernandez’s item received support from his colleagues, some councilors questioned the logistics of implementing the resolution.

Street vendors sell food items in Santa Ana, Calif., on July 18, 2022. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Councilwoman Thai Phan said while she supported keeping street vendors safe, she was unsure if attacks on vendors could be legally called hate crimes since the state law does not include victims’ occupation as a part of the classification.

“I am concerned that we might be adopting a law that doesn’t have any legal teeth,” Phan said.

Hernandez said he’s spoken to several street vendors in the community—most of whom are Hispanic—and many of them shared that they have been verbally harassed because of their race.

“Residents in our community shared with me that [people shouted] things like ‘illegals,’ ‘go back to your country,’ and things which are associated with place of origin, and that qualifies under hate crime law,” he said.

“So, if we implement a hate crime law here locally it gives us an opportunity to protect vendors.”

Hernandez also encouraged residents to support street vendors in their community.

“When you see a street vendor, go outside and say hello to them,” Hernandez said. “Get to know their names, purchase food, fruit, ice cream, whatever it is—go out there, support them, humanize them. That’s the only way to keep them safe. Show the community that we stand beside them and we’re in their corner.”

The city’s discussion will likely return to the council in the coming weeks as a resolution to vote on.