Cal State San Bernardino’s Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism will be represented at a hearing on bias-motivated violence convened by the California Fair Employment and Housing Council on Monday, Sept. 21.

Kevin Grisham, the center’s associate director and the chair of the CSUSB Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, will deliver the keynote address to open the hearing, which will run from 10:30 a.m.-3 p.m. and will be held on Zoom. The hearing can be accessed from a PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android at https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88119584638 or by phone at (669) 900-6833. The meeting ID is 881 1958 4638.

The hearing will focus on trends and causes and particular communities’ experience with bias-motivated crimes; how existing laws can be utilized, or better used, to reduce bias-motivated violence; the use of the Ralph Civil Rights Act and other civil rights laws and barriers to enforce them and any weak spots in them; the role the council could take to reduce bias-related violence; resources the Department of Fair Employment Housing has available for the public; and other related topics.

Grisham’s remarks will include an overview of the work of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism; hate crime trends internationally, nationally, in the state and the Inland Empire; factors that contribute to the current conditions of bias-related violence; and recommendations to curb such violence, including the roles of community leaders, political institutions and an informed society.

In addition to Grisham, organizations scheduled to give presentations include the Anti-Defamation League, California Rural Legal Assistance, the Equal Justice Society, Lambda Legal, TODEC, Rebirth Homes and the Sahaba Initiative.

For more information on the hearing, see the state Department of Fair Employment and Housing online news release or its online events flyer.  

Also visit the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism’s website for more information about its work and research.