Breakthrough Project responds to incidents of hate with positivity, empowerment
In late July, racist graffiti directed at black and Japanese-American people was discovered at Peterson Park, along with some swastikas.
In October, a black couple who went to a movie in Downtown Lodi found swastikas scratched into the paint of their car.
And in early November, Woodbridge residents awoke to homes and cars being tagged with hate symbols.
These kinds of incidents are fortunately rare in Lodi.
But when they do occur, the city has a resource many don’t: the Breakthrough Project.
“It’s been a great working relationship,” Lodi Police Sgt. Rick Garcia said. He’s been the department’s liaison with the Breakthrough Project for six or seven years now, he said — a role he passed on to Sgt. Steve Maynard on Jan. 1.
The cooperation between the police department and the Breakthrough Project has been a vital part of both groups’ response to hate crimes in Lodi.
“It’s a relationship we’ve had since the very beginning,” said retired Pastor David Hill, who has been involved with the group since its formation.
The group was formed in 1998, after a pair of cross burnings, one at Tokay High School. At the same time, a branch of the Ku Klux Klan left recruitment fliers all over the city.
Hill and other concerned Lodians got together with the police to see what they could do. Their goal was to drive home that Lodi wouldn’t stand for racism and intolerance.
“Hate crimes are not going to be tolerated. They are all taken seriously,” Garcia said.
In the years since, there have been the occasional flare-ups of hate crimes, such as a case of vandalism at the site of the Deshmesh Darbar Gurdwara during its construction.
But in most years, Breakthrough members and Garcia agreed, such crimes are few and far between.
“The good news is, it hasn’t been real busy,” member Kathryn Siddle said.
Still, when they happen, Breakthrough members work with police to support the victims.
“When (police) hear of something they interpret as a hate crime, they call a member of our response team,” Breakthrough Project president Lusandra Vincent said.
Breakthrough members want to make it clear to victims of hate that they have support, and show that most of Lodi is not like the intolerant few who vandalize homes and cars or worse.
“It’s nothing huge that we do. It’s just trying to be a friend and let them know that we care,” Hill said.
For example, a Stockton couple went to a movie in Downtown Lodi. When they drove home and got out of their car, they found that while they were in the movie theater, someone had scratched swastikas in the paint of their car.
“(It was) probably $6,000 worth of damage to their car,” Hill said.
Police offered to put the couple in touch with the Breakthrough Project and then passed on their information when they got the OK. Police always ask permission before sharing a victim’s information, Garcia said.
When an officer suspects a hate crime has been committed, they call the Breakthrough Project response team, made up of Hill, retired police officer Ron Tobeck, homeless advocate Russ Taylor, and Siddle, a retired social worker.
The team then makes sure to provide support to the victim, each relying on their unique backgrounds, Siddle said.
In the car case, Hill reached out with a phone call, offering a listening ear. Siddle collected information about other resources, such as San Joaquin County’s Victim-Witness Services.
“Most people don’t know about it,” Siddle said. “Why would you?”
While the police supply crime victims with resources, sometimes things can get lost in the shuffle. The Breakthrough Project team makes sure that doesn’t happen.
In the car case, the victims were mostly thankful for the emotional support, Hill said. The vandalism left them hurt and shaken, and they appreciated Breakthrough reaching out.
“We all just want to provide immediate assistance that empowers the victim,” Siddle said.
Sometimes, the help goes beyond a phone call. In another recent case several weeks ago, a young person was beaten up. The responding officer contacted the Breakthrough Project because they believed homophobia and transphobia may have been a motivation in the beating.
The response team sat with the victim at the hospital until a trusted person could pick them up.
“I was very grateful the police called us,” Siddle said. The victim was in a very fragile state of mind and very shaken, mentally and physically, she said.
In the end, the team sat with the victim for more than an hour until they could be taken somewhere safe. The victim declined any further assistance from the team.
“We did what we could on the emotional side of it,” Hill said.
The Breakthrough Project’s main goal is to prevent hate crimes from happening at all. That’s why the nonprofit holds essay and art contests meant to get children thinking critically about fighting hate and encouraging acceptance.
“We’re trying to be proactive in making a difference early on,” Hill said.
Monday’s Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration of Unity is part of that effort. The celebration will be hosted by the Breakthrough Project, and several members of the Lodi Police Department plan to attend, Garcia said.
But sometimes, being proactive isn’t enough. Whether it’s vandalism or a violent incident, the response team wants to be ready when that happens.
“Everybody’s life matters,” Hill said. “I don’t care what the situation is, God cares about every one of us.”
“Most people really do care,” Siddle said.