On Saturday, June 23, 2007, the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA), the national association of Asian Pacific American (APA) lawyers, judges and law students, marked the 25 th anniversary of Vincent Chin’s death. His death signifies a turning point in the movement for APA rights and continues to galvanize the APA community today.

“The anniversary of Vincent Chin’s death provides an opportunity to remember the lives of all hate crime victims and reminds us that efforts aimed to combat this form of race discrimination must continue,” said Les Jin, Executive Director of NAPABA.

Chin, a Chinese-American, died as a result of a brutal beating by two former, white employees of American automakers who misplaced their frustration with Japanese automakers on Chin. Chin did not incite the violence in any way nor bear any connection to the auto industry. He was fatally beaten solely because of his Asian descent.

Despite the brutality of the crime, neither of the two men spent any time in jail. Instead, by pleading guilty to manslaughter, they served three years of probation and paid $3,000 fines. Thus these men committed a fatal hate crime and walked away nearly unpunished.

This extreme injustice heightened community awareness of APAs as victims of racism and hate crimes and galvanized APAs of various ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. As a result, APAs emerged with unprecedented dedication to advocacy on these issues.

“Vincent Chin’s death and the deaths of other APAs remind us of the importance of supporting measures designed to eliminate hate crimes and ensure that justice is served for these victims,” said Phillip Shinn, NAPABA President.