HATE CRIMES

● A hate crime (also known as a bias-motivated crime or bias crime) is a

prejudice-motivated crime which occurs when a perpetrator targets a victim because
of their membership (or perceived membership) of a certain social group or racial
demographic.
● Examples of such groups can include, and are almost exclusively limited to ethnicity,
disability, language, nationality, physical appearance, political views and/or affiliation,
age, religion, gender identity, or sexual orientation.
● Hate crimes are vicious signs of narrow mindedness and deeply affect not only the
injured individual but as well as the gathering with which that unfortunate casualty
recognizes oneself. They affect community cohesion and social stability. A vigorous
reaction is, therefore, fundamental both for individual and communal security.
● Hate crimes have a broader effect than most other kinds of crime. Hate crime victims
include not only the crime’s immediate target but also others like them. Hate crimes
affect families, communities, and at times, the entire nation.

Criminal Offence + Biassed Motivation = Hate Crime

● Hate crimes comprise two elements: a criminal offence and a biassed motivation.
● First, hate crimes require a base offence to have occurred. In other words, the act
committed must constitute an offence under criminal law. If there is no underlying
crime, there is no hate crime.
● The second element of a hate crime is that the perpetrator must commit the criminal
act with a particular bias motive or motives (such as a bias against a victim’s
disability, religion, ethnicity, colour and/or their gender). The presence of a bias
motive is what differentiates hate crimes from ordinary crimes.

Features of hate crime

● Individual victims are interchangeable (random)
● The victim is chosen because of their perceived or actual membership to a particular
group.
● Hate crimes are designed to tell not just the victim but the wider community to which
the victim belongs that they are 'different' or 'unwelcome'.
● Crimes are motivated by hatred or prejudice towards a person's core identity.

Types of hate crimes

1. Racist and xenophobic hate crimes- Racist and xenophobic hate crimes are
criminal offences motivated by the bias of racism or xenophobia (fear of strangers).
Such crimes target people, property, or associations connected to people or groups
due to their actual or perceived race, ethnicity, language, migration status, etc. The
prejudice manifests itself either in the selection of the target (e.g., a cultural club
frequented by migrants) or in racist and xenophobic hostility expressed during the
crime. Racist and xenophobic hate crimes can target both majority and minority
groups.
2. Religious hate crimes- Religious hate crimes and non-crime incidents are acts
which target a victim because of the offender's hostility towards them or a group
based on their religious faith, or lack of one. In addition, attacks based on prejudice
 against other religions, for example Muslims, Seikhs, Hindus or Jews, would also be
considered religious Hate Crime.
3. Sexual orientation and transgender identity hate crime- Sexual orientation and
transgender identity are terms that are used to refer to people's sexuality. Prejudice
against someone's sexuality is often directed at people who are lesbian, gay,
bisexual or trans (LGBT) but could also be directed at someone who is heterosexual
(attracted to the opposite sex). If someone has been violent or hostile because of
sexual orientation when the victim is not heterosexual, this is known as a
homophobic or biphobic hate incident or hate crime. Hostile or violent incidents
because of transgender identity are also hate crimes known as transphobic hate
incidents.
4. Disability hate crime- Disability hate crime is a form of hate crime involving the use
of violence against people with disabilities. This is not only violence in a physical
sense, but also includes other hostile acts, such as the repeated blocking of disabled
access and verbal abuse. These hate crimes are associated with prejudice against a
disability, or a denial of equal rights for disabled people (as this is a form of
prejudice).

Causes for the Prevalence of Hate Crime

1. Expression of Prejudice or Bias: A person who commits a ‘hate crime’ need not
actually be motivated by hatred for his or her victim, but rather it is his or her
expression of prejudice or bias against the victim’s (presumed) group membership
that more properly characterises such crimes. Perpetrators of hate crimes are not
always motivated by a single type of prejudice or hatred but can be influenced by a
combination of different prejudices.
2. Impact of Social Environments: Hate crimes may also be the product of our social
environments. Hate crimes are more likely to occur where society is structured in
such a way as to advantage certain identity characteristics over others (for example,
white, male, heterosexual). Systemic discrimination, typically codified into operating
procedures, policies or laws, may give rise to an environment where perpetrators feel
a sense of impunity when victimising certain minority group members.
3. Influence of Perception: Some evidence within social psychology suggests that
perpetrators may be influenced by their perception that certain groups pose a threat
to them.

Implications of Hate Crime

1. Psychological Distress: People victimised by violent hate crimes are more likely to
experience more psychological distress than victims of other violent crimes.
Specifically, victims of crimes that are bias-motivated are more likely to experience
post-traumatic stress, safety concerns, depression, anxiety and anger than victims of
crimes that are not motivated by bias.
2. Sends Wrong Signal to the Society: Hate crimes send messages to members of
the victim’s group that they are unwelcome and unsafe in the community, victimising
the entire group and decreasing feelings of safety and security. Furthermore,
witnessing discrimination against one’s own group can lead to psychological distress
and lower self-esteem.