Hate Has a History: A Scholar’s Assault Reveals America’s Ongoing Racial Divides

Speaker: Aki Maehara, Vietnam Veteran, Professor and Historian of Racism in the U.S.

For over three decades, Aki Maehara has taught the history of racial beliefs and racism in both Colonial and U.S. history. A core lesson from his curriculum is that racism is not a modern issue but a deeply entrenched, systemic problem rooted in centuries of cultural and political development.

Maehara gave a detailed account of the attack he experienced, explaining that it was a byproduct of an atmosphere fueled and intensified over the past 12 years by certain social forces in the U.S

 What Happened on April 29, 2025 

Maehara left the East Los Angeles College campus around 10:10 PM on his electric bike. 

At an intersection, he noticed headlights behind him. When he turned around, he saw a four-door midsize sedan with its headlights aimed directly at him. 

Just before impact, he heard someone yell and briefly saw the driver’s face.

He was thrown into the air and landed on the left side of his face. 

His body rolled across the concrete and eventually stopped against a brick wall on someone’s lawn. 

As the car drove away, he heard a racial slur targeting people of Chinese descent.

Maehara was discharged from the emergency room before noon the next day with multiple injuries: a cracked cheekbone, a concussion, a large bruise extending from his face down to his neck and chest, bruised ribs, a cut on his left elbow, bruises on both hips and lower back, along with scrapes and deep internal bruising. 

He later discovered that all of his teeth were cracked at the root. He now requires full upper and lower dental implants, which will cost tens of thousands of dollars and are not covered by insurance.

Anti-Asian Hate Crimes Coalition and Asian Civil Rights League helped Asian Hate Crime Victim form A to Z (Helped raised $85K+ GoFundMe through Media and Press Conference).

 Law Enforcement Procedures and Legal Concerns

When two police officers initially took the report, they failed to document key information provided by Maehara and did not pass it on to the detectives assigned to the case:

 The identity of a potential suspect

 Threats received in January and March

 Prior police reports filed against the suspect

 The pattern of harassment and threats leading up to the attack Detectives visited Maehara two weeks later.

They interviewed his housemate, who had
video evidence, and collected contact information for his landlord, another witness to several incidents.

Maehara is working with the Anti-Asian Hate Crimes Coalition and Asian Civil Rights League in Los Angeles to explore a path forward—either through criminal prosecution or a social justice approach.