December 13, 2016 01:02 PM UTC

Aurora Post-Election Hate Crime Spree Continues

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• by: Colorado Pols

As the Denver Post’s Bruce Finley reports:

Three more hate attacks targeting African-American families in Aurora have upset residents and compelled police on Monday to step up patrols and appeal to the public for help…

The attackers may be posing as missionaries and carpet cleaner salespeople, moving door to door, to learn racial information about residents who then are targeted, the resident said. In addition to spray-painted scrawls on doors, the attacks this past weekend included threatening messages on notes, she said.

…Aurora residents have reported at least nine bias-related crimes since the Nov. 8 election and [APD Chief Nick] Metz has said he believes other incidents may be happening that haven’t been reported.

The spike in hate crimes in Aurora since the November elections is not unique; nationally a dramatic increase in such activity has occurred since Donald Trump won the presidency. Not long after the election, Trump made a two-word statement in response to questions distancing himself from these crimes, telling those responsible to “stop it.”

But they haven’t stopped. The empowerment America’s racist underbelly feels after Trump’s victory requires more of a response than a half-hearted scolding. And at this point, it’s reasonable to ask if Trump is not standing up to the spike in hate crimes since his election because he does not think it is a problem.

And that could be scarier than all these little acts of hate combined.