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National Criminal Justice Service
August, 2003
Hate Crime: A Summary
Hate crime is defined as "the violence of intolerance and bigotry, intended to hurt and intimidate someone because of their race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, or disability." (Community Relations Service, 2001)
These crimes have been plaguing our country for centuries, tearing at the very foundation of our country and destroying our neighborhoods and communities.
"A total of 11,987 law enforcement agencies in 49 states and the District
of Columbia reported 9,730 bias-motivated incidents - 9,271 single bias and
9 multiple bias" (Hate Crime Statistics, 2001)
Since an individual's biases are incidental circumstances to a particular
crime, collecting statistics and information on hate crimes is difficult.
Over the past 12 years, Congress has passed many pieces of legislation to
help shape the future of hate crime initiatives and preventative measures.
These anti-hate crime legislated acts include the
- Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 1999
- Church Arson Prevention Act of 1996
- Hate Crimes Sentencing Enhancement Act
- Hate Crime Statistics Act of 1990
Hate crime activities are being investigated
at the Federal level by the FBI’s Bias Crimes Unit and the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms (BATF) church arson and explosives experts. BATF investigations
also focus on regulating the illegal sale and possessions of firearms to potential
perpetrators of hate crimes. Programs are also being developed to bring communities
together to fight hate crimes through mediation, dialogue and discussion,
and innovative strategies to introduce and educate youth on attitudes and
behavior.
In order to understand the scope of the hate crime problem, the Justice
Department was mandated, with the passage of the Hate Crime Statistics Act
of 1990, to collect statistics and gather information on the prevalence of
these bias-motivated crimes:
- The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program (UCR) is the only national data collection program. As part of the UCR Program, the FBI publishes hate crime statistics in their annual publication, Hate Crime Statistics, 2001.
- As part of the Attorney General’s Hate Crime initiative, the Bureau of Justice Statistics has examined ways to improve participation by law enforcement agencies in collecting and reporting hate crime statistics to the FBI and to profile local responses to hate crime. The findings will assist the Federal government in identifying the accuracy of hate crime statistics and reporting practices, produce trend data and developing a model for hate crime reporting.
- In addition to collecting statistics, several agencies are funding researchers to conduct studies on hate crimes.
The Office for Victims of Crime (OVC), the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) all sponsor and fund grantee agencies to develop programs, and to provide training seminars and technical assistance to individuals and local agencies regarding hate crimes.
- OVC is working to improve the justice system’s response to victims of hate crime
- OJJDP funds agencies to develop training for professionals and to address hate crimes through preventative measures and community resources
- BJA has a training initiative for law enforcement agencies to generate awareness and to help in identifying, investigating, and taking appropriate action for bias crimes, as well as arming agencies with tools for responding effectively to incidents.
The latest in hate crime statistics and facts.
- Of the 9,721 single-bias incidents,
44.9 percent were motivated by racial prejudice, 21.6 percent were driven
by a bias toward an ethnicity/national origin, 18.8 percent motivated by religious
intolerance, 14.3 percent by sexual-orientation bias, and 0.4 percent by
disability bias. (Hate Crime
Statistics, 2001).
- "During 2001, 4,367 of the single-bias incidents were victims
of racial bias, 1,828 were victims of religious bias, 1,393 were victims
of sexual-orientation bias, 2,098 were victims of ethnic or national origin
bias, and 35 were victims of disability bias."
(Hate Crime Statistics, 2001).
- Criminal incidents can involve more than one offense, victim,
and/or offender. In 2001, there were 9,730 bias-motivated incidents, 12,020
victims, and 9,239 known offenders. A breakdown of the 12,020 victims shows
that 64.6 percent were crimes against persons and 34.7 percent were victims
of crime against property.
(Hate Crime Statistics, 2001).
- "In 2001, law enforcement agencies reported a total of 9,239
known offenders associated with 9,730 bias-motivated incidents (9 incidents
were multiple-bias). Of these known offenders, 65.5 percent were white, 20.4
percent were black, 0.9 percent were Asian/Pacific Islander, and 0.6 percent
were American Indian/Alaskan Native." (Hate Crime Statistics, 2001).
- "Residences and homes were the scenes of 30.9 percent of the
total 9,730 hate crime incidents in 2001. Incidents perpetrated on highways,
roads, alleys, or streets accounted for 18.3 percent of hate crime incidents,
and 10.1 percent occurred at schools or colleges." (Hate Crime Statistics, 2001).
- According to the most recent survey, of 2,117 prosecutor offices,
20.2% prosecuted felony hate crime cases. (Prosecutors in State
Courts, 2001).
- Twenty-three percent of college campuses with 2,500 enrolled
students had a special hate crime program or unit operated
by campus law enforcement agencies.
(Campus Law Enforcement Agencies, 1995).
- From 1997 - 1999, sixty-one percent of hate crime incidents
were motivated by race, 14 percent by religion, 13 percent by sexual
orientation, 11 percent by ethnicity, and 1 percent by victim disability.
The majority of incidents motivated by race, ethnicity, sexual orientation,
or disability involved a violent offense, while two-thirds of incidents
motivated by religion involved a property offense, most commonly vandalism.
( Hate Crime Reported in NIBRS, 1997-99).
- From 1997 - 1999, younger offenders were responsible for most
hate crimes. Thirty-one percent of violent offenders and 46 percent
of property offenders were under age 18. ( Hate Crime Reported
in NIBRS, 1997-99).
- Among the reports analyzed, five States reported incident-based statistics in the form of hate-bias crimes in their annual reports. These incidents were usually classified by motivation for hate-bias which includes race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religion, and disability (State Use of Incident-Based Crime Statistics).
- State Statistical
Analysis Centers (SACs)
For State-level data on hate/bias crime, search the following SAC websites:
California: http://caag.state.ca.us/cjsc/
Hawaii: http://www.cpja.ag.state.hi.us/
Illinois: http://www.icjia.org/public/index.cfm
Minnesota: http://www.mnplan.state.mn.us/
New York: http://criminaljustice.state.ny.us/
Oklahoma: http://www.state.ok.us/~ocjrc/sac.htm
Utah: http://www.justice.state.ut.us/
Vermont: http://www.norwich.edu/socsci/cj/vcjr.html
Virginia : http://www.dcjs.state.va.us/research/
To obtain contact information for additional SACs that maintain data on hate/bias crimes:
Delaware: http://www.jrsainfo.org/sac/de.htm
Kansas: http://www.jrsainfo.org/sac/ks.htm
Kentucky: http://www.jrsainfo.org/sac/ky.htm
Louisiana: http://www.jrsainfo.org/sac/la.htm
South Dakota: http://www.jrsainfo.org/sac/sd.htm
Tennessee: http://www.jrsainfo.org/sac/tn.htm
Wyoming: http://www.jrsainfo.org/sac/wy.htm
Lists full text publications available online.
2003 National
Crime Victims' Rights Week Resource Guide
Office for Victims of Crime, 2003
Hate
Crime and Hate Incidents in the Commonwealth of Kentucky
Kentucky Criminal Justice Council, 2002
Hate Crime Statistics, 2001
Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2002
Indicators or School
Crime and Safety, 2002
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2002
National
Victim Assistance Academy: Hate and Bias Crime
Office for Victims of Crime, 2002
Safety and Security Information
Report for 2002
University of Maine, 2002
"WE ARE NOT THE ENEMY" Hate
Crimes Against Arabs, Muslims, and Those Perceived to be Arab or Muslim after
September 11
Human Rights Watch, 2002
Gender Dimensions of Racial
Discrimination
United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, 2001
Hate Crimes
on Campus: The Problem and Efforts to Confront It
Bureau of Justice Assistance, 2001
PDF File
and ASCII Text File
Hate
Crime: The Violence of Intolerance
Community Relations Service, 2001
Hate Crimes Reported
in NIBRS, 1997-99
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2001
Home Office Research
Study 223 - Crime, Policing and Justice: the Experience of Ethnic Minorities
Findings from the 2000 British Crime Survey
Home Office Research, Development and Statistics Directorate, 2001
Reporting
Hate Crimes
Attorney General's Civil Rights Commission on Hate Crimes, 2001
Hate
Crime in California
California Department of Justice, 2001
Does
Race Influence Police Disciplinary Processes?
Justice Research and Policy, 2001
Searching
for the Denominator: Problems With Police Traffic Stop Data And an Early Warning
System Solution
Justice Research and Policy, 2001
Implementing
Controversial Policy: Results from a National Survey of Law Enforcement Department
Activity on Hate Crime
Justice Research and Policy, 2001
Hate
Crime Reporting: Understanding Police Officer Perceptions, Departmental Protocol,
and the Role of the Victim
Justice Research and Policy, 2001
Opening the Door
to Diversity
National Middle School Association, 2001
Hate on Display: A Visual
Database of Extremist Symbols, Logos, and Tattoos
Anti-Defamation League, 2000
Improving the Quality and
Accuracy of Bias Crime Statistics Nationally: An Assessment of the First
Ten Years of Bias Crime Data Collection
The Center for Criminal Justice Policy Research and Justice Research and
Statistics Association, 2000
Implementing
Controversial Policy: Results from a National Survey of Law Enforcement Department
Activity on Hate Crime
Justice Research and Policy, 2001
Responding to Hate Crime:
A Multidisciplinary Curriculum for Law Enforcement and Victim Assistance
Professionals
National Center for Hate Crime Prevention Education Development Center,
Inc., 2000
Responding
to Hate Crime: A Police Officer's Guide to Investigation and Prevention
International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), 2000
Resource
Guide on Racial Profiling Data Collection Systems: Promising
Practices and Lessons Learned
U.S. Department of Justice, 11/00
PDF File and
ASCII Text File
Improving the Quality and
Accuracy of Bias Crime Statistics Nationally
Hate Crimes Research Network, 9/00
Local
Prosecutor's Guide for Responding to Hate Crimes
The American Prosecutors Research Institute (APRI), 8/00
Promising
Practices Against Hate Crimes: Five State and Local Demonstration Projects
Bureau of Justice Assistance, 5/00
PDF File and
ASCII Text File
Addressing
Hate Crimes: Six Initiatives That Are Enhancing the Efforts of Criminal Justice
Practitioners
Bureau of Justice Assistance, 2/00
PDF File and
ASCII Text File
101 Ways to Combat Prejudice
Anti-Defamation League, 1999
Hate Crime Training: Core Curriculum
for Patrol Officers, Detectives, and Command Officers
U.S. Department of Justice, 1998
Hate Crimes Laws
Anti-Defamation League, 1999
A Policymaker's
Guide to Hate Crimes Bureau of Justice Assistance, 11/99
PDF File and
ASCII Text File
1999 Annual Report on School
Safety
Department of Justice and Department of Education, 11/99
Hate Crime Data Collection Guidelines:
Uniform Crime Reporting
Federal Bureau of Investigations, 10/99
Law Enforcement Management
and Administrative Statistics, 1997: Data for Individual State and Local
Agencies With 100 or More Officers
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 1999
State Use
of Incident-Based Crime Statistics
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2/99
PDF File
and ASCII
Text File and HTML File
Close the Book on
Hate: Responding to Hate Motivated Behaviors in Schools
Anti-Defamation League, 1999
Responding
to Hate Crimes and Bias-Motivated Incidents on College/University Campuses
(May 2000)
Community Relations Service, 5/2000
PDF File and
HTML File
Responding to Hate at School:
A Guide for Teachers, Counselors and Administrators
Southern Poverty Law Center, 1999
Ten Ways to Fight Hate:
A Community Response Guide
Southern Poverty Law Center, 1999
OJJDP Annual
Report (1996-1997)
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 8/98
PDF File and
HTML File
One America
in the 21st Century: The President's Initiative on Race
Community Relations Service, 3/98
PDF File and
ASCII Text File
Psychologists Call for
Assault on Hate Crimes
American Psychological Association, 1/98
Hate
Crime in America Summit Recommendations
International Association of Chiefs of Police, 1998
Hate Crimes Today: An Age-Old Foe
In Modern Dress
American Psychological Association, 1998
Preventing
Youth Hate Crime: A Manual for Schools and Communities
Department of Education, 1998
PDF File
and HTML File
Healing the Hate: A National
Hate Crime Prevention Curriculum for Middle Schools
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 1/97
Stopping Hate Crime: A
Case History From the Sacramento Police Department
Bureau of Justice Assistance, 1/97
Campus Law
Enforcement Agencies, 1995
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 12/96
PDF File
and ASCII Text
File and HTML
File
Prosecutors
in State Courts, 1994
Bureau of Justice Statistics, 10/96
PDF File
and ASCII Text
File and HTML
File
Hate Crime's Legislation
National Center for Victims of Crime, 1996
Violence Against Gays
and Lesbians
National Center for Victims of Crime, 1996
Hate Crime
Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 8/95
National
Bias Crimes Training for Law Enforcement and Victim Assistance Professionals
(Full text not available, only overview of publishing and ordering information
provided)
Office for Victims of Crime, 1/95
This document is not necessarily endorsed by the Almanac of Policy Issues. It is being preserved in the Policy Archive for historic reasons.