Washington, DC — Across the country, Democratic Attorneys General are fighting for the rights of people, including for people to love who they love openly, the right to make choices about their own bodies, and the right to live free of hate-fueled violence. To talk about this, California AG Rob Bonta, Colorado AG Phil Weiser, and Michigan AG Dana Nessel joined MSNBC’s Mehdi Hasan Show to speak on how their lived experiences are informing their fights for freedom.

As California’s first Filipino American AG, Rob Bonta shares how his experience as part of the AAPI community shapes how he spearheads laws and initiatives in his state, “We all bring our lived experiences to our roles, and mine is growing up in America, in California as a Filipino American. And when you arrive at a place where someone has never been before, from your community, it’s important to lead with your values, bring your lived experiences, and bring your community with you.” AG Bonta adds, “I became Attorney General at a time of great pain in the Asian American community, there were attacks and targeting on AAPI community members, and I said to the community, and I say it now, I see you, I value you, I am you, and I will fight for you and be by your side and defend you against hate crimes.”

 Colorado AG Phil Weiser said, “We’re living at a very scary time. Anti-Semitism is a leading indicator of toxicity and of real challenges in our democratic republic.” AG Weiser continues, “My grandparents and my mom survived the Holocaust, and the U.S. Army liberated my mom, one week old, along with my grandmother, my mom was born in a concentration camp, and they came to this country because of what we stand for. We need to stand united against hate and recognize that hating against any group, whether Jews, LGBTQ+, Asian Americans, [or] African Americans. It is an affront to all of us.”

 Michigan AG Dana Nessel speaks on being targeted for her Jewish heritage she says, “For a long time, I sorta regarded anti-Semitism as something out of a 1950s movie. But unfortunately, it’s come roaring back more aggressively than ever.” AG Nessel also shared, “The new legislation that I am standing firmly behind would actually expand the classes of groups of people that are involved to be protected by these laws and also increase the penalties. We are working as hard as we can but unfortunately, there are more threats now than ever against people based on their religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or race than I’ve ever seen in my career.”

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