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Essays on Hate Crime

When it comes to writing an essay on hate crimes, choosing the right topic is essential for creating a compelling and impactful piece of work. Hate crimes are a pressing issue in today's society, and writing about them can help raise awareness, spark important discussions, and contribute to positive change. In this article, we will discuss the importance of the topic, provide advice on choosing a suitable essay topic, and offer a detailed list of recommended hate crime essay topics.

Hate crimes are acts of violence, discrimination, or prejudice committed against individuals or groups based on their race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or other characteristics. These crimes have devastating effects on victims and communities, and addressing them is crucial for promoting equality and justice. By writing about hate crimes, students can shine a light on these issues, challenge stereotypes, and advocate for positive change.

When selecting a hate crime essay topic, it's important to consider your interests, the relevance of the topic, and its potential impact. Choose a topic that you are passionate about and that aligns with your academic and personal goals. Additionally, consider the current social and political climate and select a topic that is timely and relevant. Lastly, think about the potential impact of your chosen topic and how it can contribute to meaningful discussions and positive change.

Recommended Hate Crime Essay Topics

Racial hate crimes.

  • The history and impact of racial hate crimes in the United States
  • The role of social media in the perpetuation of racial hate crimes
  • Addressing systemic racism and its connection to hate crimes
  • Exploring the rise of hate crimes against Asian Americans

Religious Hate Crimes

  • The intersection of religion and hate crimes
  • Comparative analysis of hate crimes against different religious groups
  • Challenges and opportunities for religious tolerance and understanding
  • The impact of anti-Semitic hate crimes on Jewish communities

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Hate Crimes

  • The impact of hate crimes on the LGBTQ+ community
  • Legislation and policies addressing hate crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity
  • Exploring the factors contributing to hate crimes against transgender individuals
  • The role of media representation in perpetuating hate crimes against the LGBTQ+ community

Disability Hate Crimes

  • Understanding the unique challenges faced by individuals with disabilities in the context of hate crimes
  • Advocacy efforts and support systems for victims of disability hate crimes
  • Exploring the impact of ableism on the prevalence of disability hate crimes
  • The role of education and awareness in preventing disability hate crimes

Choosing the right hate crime essay topic is essential for creating a meaningful and impactful piece of work. By selecting a topic that aligns with your interests, is relevant to current social and political issues, and has the potential to contribute to positive change, you can create a compelling essay that raises awareness and sparks important discussions. We hope that the recommended essay topics provided in this article serve as inspiration for your writing and help you make a meaningful contribution to the conversation on hate crimes.

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Discriminations and Hate Crimes in The LGBT Community

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hate crime research essays

How can Community-Based Participatory Research Address Hate Crimes and Incidents?

  • Landon Turlock University of Alberta
  • Maria Mayan University of Alberta

Reports of hate crimes in Canada have increased by 72% from 2019 to 2021 (Moreau, 2022). Hate crimes harm those directly victimized and members of targeted communities (Erentzen & Schuller, 2020; Perry & Alvi, 2011). Many Canadian stakeholders advocate for increased community engagement in preventative and responsive interventions to this increasing concern. This article poses that Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) is an appropriate approach for further exploring hate crimes and incidents and suggests strategies for this area of study, including: building community partnerships; advocating for trauma-informed practices; prioritizing cultural humility and intersectionality; preparing for lengthy pre-participation communication with potential participants; anticipating out-of-scope volunteer participants; and accounting for unanticipated actions of participants. 

Author Biographies

Landon turlock, university of alberta.

is a Master of Arts in Community Engagement candidate at the University of Alberta. They have professional experience as a Registered Social Worker in addressing hate crimes, preventing violent extremism, municipal government, non-profit leadership, community development, crime prevention, restorative justice, youth work, public education, and public engagement. 

Maria Mayan, University of Alberta

is a professor in the School of Public Health at the University of Alberta and an Associate Director of the Community-University Partnership. She is an engaged scholar who grounds her work in the policy environment and situates her work at the intersection of government, not-for-profit, and disadvantaged communities. 

Ahmad, S. (2019). Islamophobic violence as a form of gender-based violence: a qualitative study with Muslim women in Canada. Journal of Gender-Based Violence, 3(1), 45-66. https://doi.org/10.1332/239868019X15492770695379

Alberta Hate Crime Committee. (2009). Alberta hate/bias crime report. Alberta Hate Crime Committee. https://cfrac.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Alberta-Hate-Bias-Crime-Report-2.pdf

Angeles, L. & Roberton, J. (2020). Empathy and inclusive public safety in the city: Examining LGBTQ2+ voices and experiences of intersectional discrimination. Women’s Studies International Forum, 78, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wsif.2019.102313

Archway Community Services. (2019, August). Abbotsford community protocol: A response to critical incidents of discrimination and hate crime. Archway Community Services. https://archway.ca/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Community-Protocol-2019-updated.pdf

Bell, J., & Perry, B. (2015). Outside looking in: The community impacts of anti-lesbian, gay, and bisexual hate crime. Journal of Homosexuality, 62(1), 98-120. https://doi.org/10.1080/00918369.2014.957133

Burch, L. (2022). ‘We shouldn’t be told to shut up, we should be told we can speak out’: Reflections on using arts-based methods to research disability hate crime. Qualitative Social Work, 21(2), 393-412. https://doi.org/10.1177/14733250211002888

Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. (2018, December). Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans.

Government of Canada. https://ethics.gc.ca/eng/policy-politique_tcps2-eptc2_2018.html

Camp, S. (2021). Incorporating a standalone hate crime section into the Criminal Code of Canada.

Alberta Hate Crimes Committee. https://sites.google.com/albertahatecrimes.org/ahcc/projects?authuser=0

Cargo, M., & Mercer, S. L. (2008). The value and challenges of participatory research: strengthening its practice. Annual review of public health, 29, 325–350. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.publhealth.29.09

Chaudhry, I. (2021). Making hate visible: Online hate incident reporting tools. Journal of Hate Studies, 17(1), 64–73. http://doi.org/10.33972/jhs.188

Chakraborti, N. (2015). Framing the boundaries of hate crime. In N. Hall, A. Corb, P. Giannasi, & J. Grieve (Eds.), The Routledge international handbook on hate crime (pp. 13-23). Routledge.

Checkoway, B. (2015). Research as community-building: Perspectives on the scholarship of engagement. Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, 8(1), 139-149. https://doi.org/10.5130/ijcre.v8i1.4240

Coalitions Creating Equity. (2020, June). CCE response model to hate incidents in Alberta.

Coalitions Creating Equity. http://coalitionscreatingequity.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Hate-Incident-BookJuly2020_LO.pdf

Criminal Code, RSC, C-46 (1985). http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/C-46/index.html

Cullen, P., Dawson, M., Price, J., & Rowlands, J. (2021). Intersectionality and invisible victims: Reflections on data challenges and vicarious trauma in femicide, family and intimate partner homicide research. Journal of Family Violence, 36, 619-628. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10896-020-00243-4

D’Alonzo, K. (2010). Getting started in CBPR: Lessons in building community partnerships for new researchers. Nursing Inquiry, 17(4), 282-288. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1440-1800.2010.00510.x

Erentzen, C., & Schuller, R. (2020). Exploring the dark figure of hate: Experiences with police bias and the under-reporting of hate crime. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 62(2), 64-97. https://doi.org/10.3138/cjccj.2019-0035

Facing Facts. (2012). Facing facts! Hate crime monitoring guidelines. Facing Facts. https://www.facingfacts.eu/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2019/02/Guidelines-for-monitoring-of-hatecrimes-and-hate-motivated-incidents-PROTECTED.pdf

Gauthier, J., Medina, K., & Dierkhising, C. (2021). Analysis of hate crimes in transgender communities. Journal of Hate Studies, 17(2), 4–14. https://doi.org/10.33972/jhs.158

Gill, P., Stewart, K., Treasure, E., & Chadwick, B. (2008). Methods of data collection in qualitative research: Interviews and focus groups. British Dental Journal, 204(6), 291-295.

https://doi.org/10.1038/bdj.2008.192 Hacker, K. (2013). Community based participatory research. Sage Publications.

Healy, S.J. (2020). ‘It spreads like a creeping disease’: Experiences of victims of disability hate crimes in austerity Britain. Disability & Society, 35(2), 176-200. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2019.1624151

Hook, J. N., Davis, D. E., Owen, J., Worthington, E. L., & Utsey, S. O. (2013). Cultural humility: Measuring openness to culturally diverse clients. Journal of Counselling Psychology, 60(3), 353-366. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0032595

Iganski, P., & Lagou, S. (2015). The personal injuries of ‘hate crime’. In N. Hall, A. Corb, P. Giannasi, & J. Grieve (Eds.), The Routledge international handbook on hate crime (pp. 34-46). Routledge.

Isobel, S. (2021). Trauma-informed qualitative research: Some methodological and practical considerations. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 30(1), 1456-1469. https://doi.org//10.1111/inm.12914

Janzen, R., & Ochocka, J. (2020). Assessing excellence in community-based research: Lessons from research with Syrian refugee newcomers. Gateways: International Journal of Community Research and Engagement, 13(1), 1-20. https://doi.org/10.5130/ijcre.v13i1.7037

Kochar, H., McCoy, J., & Jones, D. (2019, August). Responding to hate. Organization for the Prevention of Violence. https://preventviolence.ca/publication/responding-to-hate/

Lead Fund. (2019, February). Toolkit on campus hate and bias strategies to create more inclusive campuses. American Association for Access Equity and Diversity. https://www.aaaed.org/images/aaaed/LEAD_Fund/LEAD-FUND-Toolkit.pdf

Levenson, J. (2018). Trauma-informed social work practice. Social Work, 62(2), 105–113, https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/swx001

Mayan, M. J. (2009). Essentials of qualitative inquiry. Left Coast Press.

Mason-Bish, H. (2015). Beyond the silo: Rethinking hate crime and intersectionality. In N. Hall, A. Corb, P. Giannasi, & J. Grieve (Eds.), The Routledge international handbook on hate crime (pp. 24-33). Routledge.

McCaslin, W. D. (2014). Hate-motivated offences and Aboriginal Peoples: Sentencing provisions of Section 718.2(a)(i) of the Criminal Code of Canada [Master’s thesis, University of Saskatchewan]. HARVEST. https://harvest.usask.ca/bitstream/handle/10388/ETD-2014-06-1647/MCCASLIN-THESIS.pdf?sequence=4

Mercier-Dalphond, G., & Helly, D. (2021). Anti-Muslim violence, hate crime, and victimization in Canada: A study of five Canadian cities. Canadian Ethnic Studies, 53(1), 1-22. https://doi.org/10.1353/ces.2021.0000

Moreau, G. (2022). Police-reported crime statistics in Canada, 2021. Juristat. Statistics Canada Catalogue no. 85-002-X. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/85-002-x/2022001/article/00013-eng.htm

Morse, J. M., Barrett, M., Mayan, M., Olson, K., & Spiers, J. (2002). Verification strategies for establishing reliability and validity in qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 1(2), 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1177/1609406902001002

Newman, E., Risch, E., & Kassam-Adams, N. (2006). Ethical issues in trauma-related research: A review. Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics, 1(3), 29-46. https://doi.org/10.1525/jer.2006.1.3.29

Perry, B. (2001). In the name of hate: Understanding hate crimes. Routledge.

Perry, B., & Alvi, S. (2011). ‘We are all vulnerable’: The in terrorem effects of hate crimes. International Review of Victimology, 18(1), 57–71. https://doi.org/10.1177/0269758011422475

Perry, B. (2015). Exploring the community impacts of hate crime. In N. Hall, A. Corb, P. Giannasi, & J. Grieve (Eds.), The Routledge international handbook on hate crime (pp. 47-58). Routledge.

Yoshihama, M., & Carr, E. (2002). Community participation reconsidered. Journal of Community Practice, 10(4), 85-103. https://doi.org/10.1300/J125v10n04_06

hate crime research essays

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Using Research to Improve Hate Crime Reporting and Identification

Hate crimes harm whole communities. They are message crimes that tell all members of a group—not just the immediate victims—that they are unwelcome and at risk.

The damage that bias victimization causes multiplies when victims and justice agencies don’t recognize or report hate crimes as such. In addition, in cases for which law enforcement agencies fail to respond to or investigate hate crimes, relationships between law enforcement and affected communities can suffer, and public trust in police can erode. [1]

While it is known that hate crimes are underreported throughout the United States, there is not a clear understanding of exactly why reporting rates are low, to what extent, and what might be done to improve them. An even more elementary question, with no single answer, is: What constitutes a hate crime? Different state statutes and law enforcement agencies have different answers to that question, which further complicates the task of identifying hate crimes and harmonizing hate crime data collection and statistics.

See "Hate Crimes: A Distinct Category."

A recent series of evidence-based research initiatives supported by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) is helping to narrow this critical knowledge gap and illuminate a better path forward. The study findings fill in vital details on causes of hate crime underreporting in various communities, including

  • hate crime victims’ reluctance to engage with law enforcement;
  • victims’ and law enforcement agencies’ inability to recognize certain victimizations as hate crimes;
  • a very large deficit of hate crime reporting by law enforcement agencies of all sizes; and
  • variations in hate crime definitions across jurisdictions.

Significant insights to emerge from those studies include the following: [2]

  • A growing number of members of the Latino community, particularly those who recently immigrated to the United States, reported experiencing bias victimization. (But Black communities endure more hate crimes than any other racial or ethnic group.)
  • Many Latino individuals, especially immigrants, tend to report bias victimization only to friends and family. They are often highly reluctant to share incidents with law enforcement or other authorities.
  • LGBTQ+ community members also reported an elevated rate of bias victimization. Some victims hesitate to report hate crimes to authorities out of fear of reprisals from law enforcement or because, among other reasons, they don’t want their sexual orientation or gender identity exposed.
  • Many hate crimes, particularly those targeting the LGBTQ+ community, are the product of mixed motivations—for example, hate and theft. This likely results from a perception that certain victim groups are vulnerable and less likely to report the crimes.
  • Law enforcement officers often lack the training and knowledge needed to investigate, identify, and report hate crimes. The presence of a dedicated officer or unit enhances a law enforcement agency’s ability to identify, respond to, and report hate crimes.
  • Law enforcement agencies with policies in place that support hate crime investigation and enforcement are more likely to report investigating possible hate crimes in their jurisdiction.

In the end, knowledge gained from the NIJ-supported research on bias victimization and hate crime can strengthen hate crime recognition, reporting, and response.

See "Hate Crime vs. Bias Victimization."

Hate Crime Reporting Deficit Driven by Fear, Lack of Knowledge

Federal data captures roughly 1 in 31 hate crimes.

The disparity between the number of hate crime victimizations that actually occur and the number reported by law enforcement is vast and long-standing. As hate crimes continue to rise in the United States, especially in vulnerable populations, the search for ways to reduce that disparity becomes more urgent.

A representative sample of hate crime victimizations across the United States, collected from the National Crime Victimization Survey, revealed that only a small portion of all hate crimes find their way into official hate crime reporting. [3] An annual average of 243,770 hate crime victimizations of persons 12 or older occurred between 2010 and 2019. [4] In the same period, law enforcement agencies reported an annual average of 7,830 hate crimes to the FBI’s Hate Crime Statistics program. Those figures suggest that roughly 1 of every 31 hate crimes is captured in U.S. federal statistics.

The FBI has published hate crime statistics provided by law enforcement since 1996. However, submitting hate crime data to the FBI is voluntary, and many state and local law enforcement agencies either report that their jurisdictions experience no hate crimes or do not report any hate crime data. [5]

Three Conditions for a Hate Crime to Enter National Statistics

The overall investigation and prosecution of hate crimes suffer from the prevalence of inaccurate hate crime data. The COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act of 2021 acknowledges that incomplete data from federal, state, and local jurisdictions have hindered our understanding of hate crimes. [6]  Without a full, data-informed understanding of the problem, law enforcement and communities will be unable to provide an adequate response.

Three steps must occur for federal statistics to capture a hate crime incident.

  • A victim, a victim’s friend or family member, or another person with knowledge of the incident must report the incident to law enforcement.
  • Upon receiving an incident report, law enforcement must recognize and record it as a hate crime by establishing sufficient evidence through an investigation. [7]
  • The law enforcement agency must report the hate crime to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program.

Reporting barriers are present at each step of the process, which results in chronic and acute underreporting of hate crimes.

Dealing With Divergent Hate Crime Definitions

Although the FBI has a definition for hate crimes, their definition only affects state data-reporting obligations. The FBI definition has no impact on states’ own criminal code definitions. State and local hate crime definitions vary widely in terms of whom they protect and the types of offenses they include. [8]  The varying hate crime definitions make it challenging to obtain an even-handed and reliable summary of hate crime statistics across jurisdictions. When recording cases for the FBI, law enforcement agencies are required to adhere to the federal definition of offenses and protected groups. [9]  An offense that constitutes a federal hate crime may not constitute a hate crime in a state or local jurisdiction; the reverse could also be true. As a result, hate crime counts based on jurisdiction-specific definitions are not always comparable to counts reported by the FBI.

Understanding Victim Reluctance to Report Hate Crimes

NIJ-sponsored research on hate crimes that affect Latino and LGBTQ+ communities suggests that many factors influence whether individuals who experience or witness hate crimes report them to law enforcement. Those factors vary across communities.

Researchers at Northeastern University, the University of Massachusetts Lowell, the University of Texas Medical Branch, and the University of Delaware conducted a study of victimization bias affecting three large, geographically diverse Latino populations. The study found that victims who experienced bias victimization overwhelmingly sought help from friends or family and not from formal authorities, particularly law enforcement. [10] The report rates to formal authorities by nonimmigrant and immigrant Latinos were similar, though nonimmigrant Latinos were more likely than immigrant Latinos to report experiencing bias victimization. It’s important to note that the Latino community is large and varied in the United States, and victimization bias varies by nature and degree across Latino communities. Many Latino study participants said that their past experiences as victims of personal or indirect discrimination have made them less willing to report their bias victimization to authorities or to trust those outside of their community.

Among Latino populations, several factors influenced their reluctance to contact law enforcement about hate crimes, including concern over retaliation by the offending party, harassment by police, and worries over the victim’s immigration status.

Florida International University conducted a study of LGBTQ+ Latinos in Miami, Florida, that established an additional factor that inhibited victim reporting of hate crimes to law enforcement: concern about the consequences of revealing their sexual orientation or gender identity. [11] The study also found that friends’ encouragement to report a crime was “by far” the strongest predictor of hate crime reporting, which increased the likelihood of the victim reporting the crime at least ten-fold.

Multiple Sources of Initial Hate Crime Reporting to Law Enforcement

Although it is vital for victims to report hate crimes, it is not the only way that law enforcement finds out about these types of crimes. The National Hate Crime Investigation Study found that, of all incidents reported to law enforcement in a nationally representative sample, victims reported 45 percent of those hate crimes and other individuals reported 52 percent. [12]

The Miami-based study reported that criminal justice practitioners perceived that law enforcement initiates most hate crime cases in response to media coverage of bias-motivated events rather than in response to victims’ reporting. 13

Low rates of formal reporting obscure the significant impact that hate crimes have on victims. Bias victimization can be just as, or more, damaging to Latino victims than other types of victimization, such as assault or theft. Among the three large metro Latino communities that the Latino bias research study examined, bias victimization had more of a mental health impact on community members than other forms of victimization. [14] In fact, bias victimization is unique in its negative impact on mental health. This has notable implications for both prevention and intervention within the community.

The Miami-Dade study of LGBTQ+ Latino individuals reported these other consequences of bias victimization (perhaps influenced by mental health impacts):

  • Victims began to avoid LGBTQ+ venues or friends (13 percent).
  • Victims had to change their housing (23 percent).
  • Victims tried to act more “straight” (35 percent).

The strongest predictor of a victim changing their housing was that the victim experienced a hate crime involving the use of a weapon.

Recognizing Hate Crime Incidents

It isn’t enough for a law enforcement agency to receive a report of a hate crime incident if the agency doesn’t recognize and report the incident as such. But identifying a bias motivation can be challenging. It’s not always clear what motivated a person to commit a crime, and other factors unrelated to bias may mask an incident’s hate-based status. Further, it’s not typical for law enforcement to be required to identify a motive.

Mixed-Motive Hate Offenses: Choosing Victims for Their Vulnerability

Bias motives can emerge during disputes or incidents that are unrelated to bias, which potentially complicates law enforcement’s ability to identify a motive. NIJ-sponsored research by the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), a research center at the University of Maryland, found that these mixed-motive hate offenses are common. [15] START developed a database known as BIAS (the Bias Incidents and Actors Study), which collected information from 960 adult individuals who committed hate crimes from 1990 to 2018.

BIAS found that almost a quarter of hate crimes targeting victims due to their sexual orientation or gender had mixed motives. Additionally, nearly all hate crimes that targeted persons because of their age or physical or mental disabilities had mixed motives, such as a combination of hate and theft. The researchers noted that, in those cases in particular, the crime likely results from the fact that the person committing it perceives that certain victim groups are vulnerable and less inclined to report incidents to authorities. The study also found that mixed-motive hate crimes were more likely to be spontaneous or otherwise unpredictable than crimes motivated only by bias.

Varying Hate-Based Forms of Messaging – How to Identify a Crime as Hate-Motivated

A University of New Hampshire research team identified the top four indicators of hate motivation that law enforcement identified and reported in the National Hate Crime Investigation Study (NHCIS):

  • Hate-related verbal comments (reported by victims in 51.83 percent of hate crimes in the NHCIS database)
  • Victim belief that they were targeted because of hate or bias (28.96 percent)
  • Hate-related written comments (24.75 percent)
  • Hate-related drawings or graffiti found at the crime scene (23.39 percent) [16]

Characteristics of Primary Suspects in Hate Crime Investigations

The NHCIS examined characteristics of suspects from a sample of 783 hate crime investigations in 2018 where law enforcement identified a suspect. [17] The primary suspects were white in nearly three-quarters (73.69 percent) of those cases. See Table 1 for a breakdown of characteristics of primary suspects.

Table Note: Percentages for primary suspect gender, race/ethnicity, and age presented for cases in which information was known. Unknown/missing data: gender=59, 7.27% (weighted); race/ethnicity=145, 18.41% (weighted); age=221, 29.9% (weighted).

Varying Traits of Those Who Commit Hate Crimes

The START database study, BIAS, found that the behaviors, experiences, and characteristics of those who commit hate crimes in the United States varied significantly.

  • Some offenders were fully engaged in the world of bigotry and hate when they committed a bias-based offense, while others were acting on bias themes that pervade U.S. communities.
  • Some committed crimes of opportunity, while others carefully premeditated their acts.
  • Some were susceptible to negative peer influences or were struggling with mental health issues or substance abuse. [18]

The study also established that the characteristics of persons who commit hate crimes also varied considerably, depending on the nature of the prejudice involved. For example:

  • Those who committed hate crimes based on their victims’ religious beliefs were often older, better educated, and had higher rates of military experience than those who committed hate crimes based on other motivations.
  • Those motivated by religious bias displayed high rates of mental health concerns and were most likely to plan or commit hate crimes.
  • Those motivated by bias based on sexual orientation, gender, or gender identity were often young, unmarried, and unemployed. They were also most likely to commit hate crimes with accomplices and while under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Agency Reporting of Zero Hate Crimes

Data analyses from the NIJ-supported NHCIS showed that many U.S. law enforcement agencies, regardless of size, reported that they conducted no hate crime investigations within 2018. This is consistent with the FBI’s assessment from hate crime statistics provided by law enforcement agencies. According to the FBI, generally, around 85 percent of law enforcement agencies said that no hate crimes occurred in their jurisdiction. [19] That is good news if no hate crimes occurred, but it is problematic if hate crimes are occurring without being reported or investigated as such.

The hate crime investigations study authors noted that although over half of large agencies (100+ officers) reported no hate crimes investigations in 2018, several large agencies reported more than 50 hate crimes investigations that year. Based on an assessment of case summaries, the researchers concluded that better documentation increased the number of investigations. They also found that agency policies and procedures increased the number of hate crime investigations.

Implications and Recommendations: How Research Can Enhance Hate Crime Reporting, Investigations

NIJ-supported hate crime research identified several proposals to improve hate crime investigation and reporting. One promising area is for agencies to implement certain hate crime policies and practices. The NHCIS surveyed agencies on whether they had implemented five specific policies and practices. The study found four of the five were significantly related to an increased number of reported hate crime investigations, even when controlling for agency type and size: [20]

  • Assigning a dedicated officer or unit to investigate hate crimes.
  • Reviewing procedures for cases with possible hate or bias motivation.
  • Developing written policy guidelines for investigating hate crimes.
  • Conducting outreach to local groups on hate crimes.

Researchers found no significant differences in hate crime reporting rates between agencies that had provided officers with training on hate crime investigations, and those that had not; however, the study did not look at the nature and quality of the hate crime training the officers received. The NHCIS noted that officers with minimal training are often tasked with identifying hate crimes based on their state’s legal definition. The report also noted that bias-based crimes are often hard to classify, even with good training. More information is needed to determine the optimal type and focus of hate crime training. The Latino bias studies identified a need to both identify hate crimes and increase community education on hate crimes. The research team identified the following policy and process needs, among others, to improve identification and reporting:

  • Enhance police training about risks associated with bias victimization in Latino communities.
  • Increase education and awareness about bias victimization among Latino population groups.
  • Build support for community-based agencies to facilitate the formal process of helping victims and reporting hate crimes to law enforcement. [21]

The study of LGBTQ+ Latinos in Miami identified the following recommendations to improve how law enforcement agencies report and identify anti-LGBTQ hate crimes:

  • Establish a hate crime detection protocol for emergency dispatchers, patrol officers, police detectives, case screeners, and prosecutors.
  • Develop a specialized workforce to identify, tackle, and prevent hate crimes; the workforce should be composed of prosecutors, detectives, patrol officers, victims’ liaisons, emergency dispatchers, researchers, and community experts.
  • Create a dedicated support center for hate crime victims.
  • Recruit police officers and prosecutors from the LGBTQ+ community.
  • Develop formal policies to affirm and support transgender colleagues, victims, and witnesses.
  • Encourage cooperation by pursuing victim engagement alternatives to subpoenas. Train criminal justice practitioners to improve victim engagement and hate crime detection, evidence gathering, and case screening.
  • Engage in effective communication and awareness-building campaigns, such as initiatives to encourage victims to tell friends about the incident, as well as encouraging friends to persuade a victim to report the crime. [22]

It is critical for both communities and law enforcement to improve their methods of reporting and identifying hate crimes. Only then will they be able to prevent and respond to incidents and link victims to services they need. Doing so will also enable the field to develop a more comprehensive understanding of the scope and nature of the problem. The current gap between the number of hate crime victimizations and the number of hate crimes that law enforcement reported and investigated threatens the relationship between law enforcement and targeted communities. Chronic, widespread underreporting of hate crimes also greatly reduces the likelihood of justice for victims.

Findings from NIJ-supported research provide important insight into the causes of underreporting and under-identification of hate crimes. These studies also offer policy and practice recommendations to improve how law enforcement agencies report and identify hate crimes.

Sidebar: Hate Crimes: A Distinct Crime Category

The codification of hate crime laws began in the 1980s, as jurisdictions acted to redress the harm, beyond victim impact, that bias-based victimizations inflict on society. [23] In a 2022 solicitation for further hate crime research, NIJ noted,

Hate crimes are a distinct category of crime that have a broader effect than most other kinds of crime because the victims are not only the crime’s immediate target but also others in the targeted group. [24]

Hate crimes are traditional criminal offenses with an added element of bias motivation. They are not limited to crimes against persons; the crimes can target businesses, religious institutions, other organizations, and society at large. Additionally, hate crimes are not limited to one type of motivating prejudice. The FBI defines a hate crime as:

a criminal offense committed against a person or property which is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender’s bias against race, religion, disability, ethnic or national origin group, or sexual orientation group. [25]

Hate crimes can be violent or nonviolent, but the acts must be recognized criminal offenses even if the bias element is set aside. Yet the wide net cast by hate crime laws has not resulted in high rates of hate crime prosecution or punishment. As noted in an NIJ-sponsored report on findings from the National Hate Crime Investigations Study, only 4 percent of hate crimes investigated by law enforcement resulted in someone being criminally charged. [26]

Return to the text.

Sidebar: Hate Crime vs. Bias Victimization

Hate crimes are a form of bias victimization. A criminal offense is a core element of every hate crime. However, not every bias victimization is a crime. In simple math terms, hate crimes are a subset of all bias victimizations.

The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting Program (UCR) defines a hate crime as a “committed criminal offense which is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender’s bias(es)” against a

  • sexual orientation
  • gender identity27

State and local jurisdictions have their own hate crime statutes proscribing some or all of those or other types of bias. An act of bias victimization can be, but need not be, a criminal offense.

Return to text.

[note 1]  International Association of Chiefs of Police,  Responding to Hate Crimes: A Police Officer’s Guide to Investigation and Prevention  (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Administration, 1999).

[note 2]  The five NIJ-supported hate crime study reports covered in this article are: Carlos A. Cuevas, et al.,  Understanding and Measuring Bias Victimization Against Latinos , October 2019, NCJ 253430; Carlos A. Cuevas, et al.,  Longitudinal Examination of Victimization Experiences of Latinos (LEVEL): Extending the Bias Victimization Study , August 2021, NCJ 30167; Michael A. Jensen, Elizabeth A. Yates, and Sheehan E. Kane,  A Pathway Approach to the Study of Bias Crime Offenders , February 2021, NCJ 300114; Besiki Luka Kutateladze,  Anti-LGBTQ Hate Crimes in Miami: Research Summary and Policy Recommendations , September 2021, NCJ 302239; Lisa M. Jones, Kimberly J. Mitchell, and Heather A. Turner,  U.S. Hate Crime Investigation Rates and Characteristics: Findings from the National Hate Crime Investigations Study (NHCIS) , December 2021, NCJ 304531.

[note 3]  Grace Kena and Alexandra Thompson,  Hate Crime Victimization, 2005–2019  (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), 2021).

[note 4]  Erica Smith,  Hate Crime Recorded by Law Enforcement, 2010–2019  (Washington, DC: U.S. DOJ, BJS, 2021.

[note 5]  Smith,  Hate Crime Recorded by Law Enforcement .

[note 6]  COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, Pub. L. No. 117-17, 123 Stat. 2835 and 135 Stat. 265, 266, 267, 268, 269, 270, 271 and 272 (2021).

[note 7] Global Law Enforcement Support Section (GLESS) Crime and Law Enforcement Statistics Unit (CLESU),  Hate Crime Data Collection Guidelines and Training Manual  (Washington, DC: Federal Bureau of Investigation: Criminal Justice Information Division Uniform Crime Reporting Program, 2022).

[note 8] U.S. Department of Justice, “ Laws and Policies .”

[note 9] GLESS CLESU,  Hate Crime Data Collection Guidelines and Training Manual.

[note 10] Cuevas, et al.,  Understanding and Measuring Bias Victimization Against Latinos ; Cuevas, et al.,  Longitudinal Examination of Victimization Experiences of Latinos (LEVEL) .

[note 11] Kutateladze,  Anti-LGBTQ Hate Crimes in Miami .

[note 12] Jones, Mitchell, and Turner,  U.S. Hate Crime Investigation Rates and Characteristics .

[note 13] The practitioners were prosecutors who handled hate crime cases in the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, detectives from the Miami-Dade Police Department, one victim liaison from the police department, and one from the prosecutor’s office; Kutateladze,  Anti-LGBTQ Hate Crimes in Miami .

[note 14] The three-community bias study survey sampled Latino community members generally, not limited to self-identified bias victims. Respondents reported on their own bias experiences. Overall, 52.9 percent of participants experienced some form of bias event in their lifetime.

[note 15] Jensen, Yates, and Kane,  A Pathway Approach to the Study of Bias Crime Offende rs .

[note 16] Jones, Mitchell, and Turner,  U.S. Hate Crime Investigation Rates and Characteristics .

[note 17] Jones, Mitchell, and Turner,  U.S. Hate Crime Investigation Rates and Characteristics .

[note 18] Jensen, Yates, and Kane,  A Pathway Approach to the Study of Bias Crime Offenders .

[note 19] Smith,  Hate Crime Recorded by Law Enforcement .

[note 20] Jones, Mitchell, and Turner,  U.S. Hate Crime Investigation Rates and Characteristics .

[note 21] Cuevas, et al.,  Understanding and Measuring Bias Victimization Against Latinos ; Cuevas, et al.,  Longitudinal Examination of Victimization Experiences of Latinos (LEVEL) .

[note 22] Kutateladze,  Anti-LGBTQ Hate Crimes in Miami .

23 Ryken Grattet and Valerie Jenness,  Making Hate a Crime: From Social Movements to Law Enforcement  (New York, NY: Russel Sage Foundation, 2001).

[note 24] NIJ FY22 Research and Evaluation on Hate Crime  (Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, 2022).

[note 25] FBI, “Defining a Hate Crime.”

[note 26] Lisa M. Jones, Kimberly J. Mitchell, and Heather A. Turner,  U.S. Hate Crime Investigation Rates and Characteristics: Findings from the National Hate Crime Investigations Study (NHCIS) , December 2021, NCJ 304531.

[note 27] FBI Hate Crime Statistics Reports, UCR, “Definition of a Hate Crime.”

About the author

Kaitlyn Sill, Ph.D. is a Social Science Research Analyst at the National Institute of Justice. Paul A. Haskins, JD, is a contract Writer-Editor supporting the National Institute of Justice.

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Essays on Hate Crime

Writing a hate crime essay in today's world is more relevant to the current situation than ever. Societies around the world have been battling hate crimes for decades, but despite small victories along the way, the war remains very much ongoing. The reasons behind most hate crimes are racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, sexual orientation, gender identity, and religion – many hate crime essays are concerned with these topics. Our samples of essays on hate crimes help students to become more acquainted with the subject and benefit their writing considerably. Check out different hate crime essay samples below for basic guidelines on your essay. We also prepare essays for those who are unfamiliar with the topic or unable to dedicate enough time to complete the task on a high level.

The Transgender Persons Bill 2016 The transgender persons Bill 2016 was recently listed for passage during the ongoing session of parliament. The bill aims at recognizing transgender persons and conferring anti-discriminatory entitlements and rights related to welfare, education, health and employment measures. The bill provides for the self-perceived gender identity (World...

of speech code is variably dependent on distinct administrations in educational institutions. Conclusively, there are more negative than positive implications of using speech code to counter hate speech in educational institutions. Work cited Mill, Arthur, Altman. “PHI-306 Applied Ethics.” Free Speech, Week 8, 2007. Accessed 14 March 2018....

Referred by the title The Mathew Shepherd , the movie is a Canadian-American film produced in 2002 and directed by Spottiswoode Roger. The movie was acted based on a true story of a young adult who was gay and murdered in 1998. The death of the openly declared gay...

The Issue of Equality in a Multiracial Setting The two videos were informative in their ability to simplify the issue of equality in a multiracial setting, as is the case in America. Both Lysicott and Richen argue for more equality in their videos and even with the differences in their arguments,...

Justice and fairness are predicated on the concept of natural and equal rights for all men and women, rather than on the characteristics they exhibit. A hate crime does not always refer to criminal behaviors motivated by hatred, but rather violent crimes motivated by sexual, racial, or other forms of...

Words: 2338

Hate crime laws continue to exist to protect citizens in the United States from bias. This treatment of people of diverse religious beliefs, race, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, and handicap (Ralph, Capewell, and Bonnett, 2016) is still illegal under federal law. Furthermore, law enforcement remains under the jurisdiction of the...

Words: 2375

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Omar Mateen, a twenty-nine-year-old security guard, opened fire on a gay club in Orlando in June 2016, killing 49 people and injured 58 more. This incident was extensively characterized in the media as a hate crime or a terrorist attack, prompting the law enforcement authorities on the scene to shoot...

Words: 1588

Terrorism and Motivations: Behavioral and Psychological Perspectives Terrorism stands out as a global pandemic with a level one security priority. The unfavorable outcome of terror plots raises more questions about the motivations and identities of the perpetrators. One major speculation appears to be the innate motivations for terrorism. Regardless, the investigation...

Words: 1048

Religion is described as the collection of dogmas, values, practices, and feelings that describe the relationship between divinity and humans. The majority of religious sects are founded on an idealized account of a country or a prophet who taught his disciples the ideals of life (Atheisme.free.fr, 2018). Hindus, Muslims, Christians,...

Words: 1982

Hate Crime and its Impact on Society Hate crime is described as a violent act in which the victim is motivated by an intention to harm others of a certain faith, ethnicity, or gender. There has been a substantial rise in terrorist attacks across the world over the last three decades,...

Misogyny is described as disdain for, disgust for, or prejudice toward girls or women. Racial objectification, brutality against females, disenfranchisement of minorities, belittling of women, male privilege, sexism, androcentrism, hatred, sex discernment, and gender inequality are both manifestations of misogyny. A hate crime is described as a partiality-driven misconduct that...

Words: 1361

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Hate crime research paper.

hate crime research essays

This sample Hate Crime Research Paper is published for educational and informational purposes only. Like other free research paper examples, it is not a custom research paper. If you need help writing your assignment, please use our custom writing services and buy a paper on any of the criminal justice research paper topics .  This sample research paper on hate crime features: 7500+ words (27 pages), an outline, APA format in-text citations, and a bibliography with 27 sources.

I. Introduction

Ii. hate crime laws, a. for and against hate crime legislation, b. federal and state hate crime laws, iii. hate crime statistics, a. national hate crime statistics reported through summary ucr, b. national hate crime statistics through ncvs, iv. hate crime theory, a. group conflict theory, b. social learning theory, c. strain theory, v. hate crime perpetrators, a. characteristics of hate crime perpetrators, b. situational factors associated with hate crime, c. emerging typology, vi. organized hate group members, vii. hate crime victims, a. problems in identifying hate crime victims, b. hate crime victim types, 1. hate crimes based on race and ethnicity, 2. hate crimes based on religion, 3. hate crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity, 4. hate crimes based on disability, 5. hate crimes based on gender, viii. responding to hate crime, a. police response to hate crime, b. courts’ response to hate crime, ix. preventing hate crime.

A. Preventing Hate Crime Through Education

B. Anti-Hate Organizations

X. conclusion.

The term hate crime became part of the American lexicon in 1985 when it was coined by United States Representatives John Conyers and Mario Biaggi. Although the term hate crime and societal interest in it are relatively recent developments, hate crime has deep historical roots. Throughout U.S. history, a significant proportion of all murders, assaults, and acts of vandalism and desecration have been fueled by hatred. As Native Americans have been described as the first hate crime victims, hate crimes have existed since the United States’ inception. Since then, members of all immigrant groups have been subjected to discrimination, harassment, and violence.

Although there are variations in definition, and certainly variations among state hate crime laws, in general a hate crime is considered to be an illegal act against a person, institution, or property that is motivated (in whole or in part) by the offender’s prejudice against the victim’s group membership status. Although not all jurisdictions, academics, or professionals agree about who should be protected by hate crime laws, the majority of such laws describe the offender’s motivation based on prejudice against the victim’s, race, color, nationality, religion, gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability status.

While hate crime behavior has a long history, it has only been in the last couple of decades that research to understand this type of crime has been conducted. The purpose of this research paper is to present the hate crime knowledge that has accumulated over these last decades. This research paper will present the history of hate crime law, the scope of the problem, the theory and psychology behind hateful/prejudicial behaviors, characteristics of perpetrators and victims, policing hate crime, and responding to and preventing hate crime.

Proponents of hate crime laws feel strongly about society making a statement that biased (or hate) crimes will not be tolerated and that serious penalties will be applied to those who commit such crimes. In addition, these laws are important in order to deter potential hate crime offenders who intentionally target members of subordinate groups. Hate crime laws are also symbolic and promote social cohesion by officially stating that victimization of people who are “different” is not accepted or tolerated in a modern society.

There have also been arguments against the formation of hate crime laws. Not all believe that hate crimes have been a significant problem in society; rather, some see it as a media-exaggerated issue—a product of a society that is highly sensitive to prejudice and discrimination. Thus, a special set of criminal laws that include hate is not warranted, and the generic criminal laws will suffice. Those who oppose hate crime laws also argue that attempting to determine motivation for an already criminal act is difficult and may pose moral problems in that the offender is being punished for a criminal act and for his or her motivation. It has also been argued that hate crime laws do not deter people from engaging in these crimes. Others argue that the disagreement over which subordinate groups to include in the hate crime laws actually causes added discrimination and marginalization. Critics state that what these laws effectively are saying is that one group is more worthy of protection and care than another. Critics also wonder why anger/hate is more punishable than other motives such as greed. Although there has been (and still is) debate about hate crime laws, the mere fact that they exist in several countries around the world, as well as within the United States, indicates that reasoning in favor of these laws has outweighed that against them.

Hate crime laws in the United States exist at the federal and state levels. Although federal and state laws differ, most protected characteristics include race, national origin, ethnicity, and religion. Some laws also include sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, and disability. The federal hate crime system includes laws, acts, and data collection statutes. The current federal hate crime law permits federal prosecution of crimes committed based upon the victim’s race, color, religion, or nation of origin when the victim is engaging in a federally protected activity (e.g., attending a public school; working at a place of employment). The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crime Prevention Act of 2007 (i.e., the Matthew Shepard Act), which is under consideration as of this writing, would extend the existing federal hate crime law to include crimes based upon the victim’s gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, and disability, and would drop the existing requirement that the victim be involved in a federally protected activity. The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 requires that the U.S. Sentencing Commission enhance criminal penalties (up to 30%) for offenders who commit a federal crime that was motivated by the victim’s race, religion, color, national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, or sexual orientation.

There are two federal data collection statutes. The first, the Hate Crime Statistics Act of 1990, requires that the U.S. Attorney General collect data on all crimes that are motivated by the victim’s race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or disability. Since 1992, the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have jointly published hate crime statistics on an annual basis. The Campus Hate Crimes Right to Know Act of 1997 requires college and university campus security authorities to collect and report data on crimes committed on the basis of the victim’s race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity, and disability.

The majority of states have some sort of hate crime legislation, but it differs from state to state. For example, some states treat hate crimes as low-severity offenses, while other states have more general hate crime laws or sentence enhancing for crimes that are motivated by bias. In some states, maximum criminal sentences may be doubled, tripled, or increased even more for a hate crime. The states also differ in the subordinate groups that transform a general crime to a hate crime and as to what degree this bias must be shown (e.g., beliefs, character). All state statutes include at least race, religion, and ethnicity, but differ on inclusion of other subordinate groups. For example, about 70% of the states also include gender and sexual orientation, while fewer include disability, political affiliation, or age.

At the national level, data on hate crimes come from two principal resources: the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program and the National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS). In addition, several anti-hate groups collect data and report rates of hate crime victimization at both the national and regional levels. It is important to note that each agency collects the data in a different manner and thus, each report varies in terms of rates, types, and focus of hate crime. For example, since the NCVS collects information through anonymous surveys, the rates of hate crime are significantly higher than the official police records reported in the UCR. Also, since state laws differ, what is considered a hate crime in one state may not be considered a hate crime in another state and therefore may not be counted in the UCR. Thus, data reporting sources differ on the number and types of hate crimes reported.

Based on the hate crime reports from law enforcement agencies across the United States, the UCR data reflect aggregate frequencies of incidents, victims, suspected offenders, and categories of bias motivation. Since 1991, participation in the program has increased substantially from 29% to 85% of the United States population being represented. Nationally, the number of hate crimes reported has fluctuated between about 6,000 and 10,000 incidents annually since 1991 (U.S. Department of Justice, FBI, 2008).

Historically, racial animosity consistently has been the leading motivation for hate crime, followed by religious intolerance, and sexual orientation bias motives. According to the FBI’s most recent report, Hate Crime Statistics, 2006, a total of 7,772 criminal incidents involving 9,080 offenses and 9,652 victims were reported in 2006 as a result of bias against a particular race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity/national origin, or physical or mental disability. The majority of hate crime incidents, 51.8%, were motivated by racial bias, and an additional 12.7% were driven by hatred for a particular ethnicity or nationality. Roughly 19% were motivated by religious intolerance, and 15.5% were triggered by bias against a sexual orientation. One percent involved bias against physical or mental disabilities (U.S. Department of Justice, FBI, 2008).

Sixty-six percent of racial bias incidents were anti-black, and 22% were anti-white. Fifty-eight percent of ethnicity bias incidents were anti-Hispanic. Sixty-six percent of religious bias incidents were anti-Jewish, while 11% were anti-Islamic. According to data for the 7,330 known offenders reported in 2006, an estimated 58.6 percent were white, and 20.6% were black. The race of the offender was unknown for 12.9%, and other races accounted for the remaining known offenders. The majority (31.0%) of hate crime incidents in 2006 occurred in or near residences or homes; followed by 18.0% on highways, roads, alleys, or streets; 12.2% at colleges or schools; 6.1% in parking lots or garages; and 3.9% at churches, synagogues, or temples. The remaining 28.8% of hate crime incidents occurred at other specified locations, multiple locations, or other/ unknown locations.

On July 1, 2000, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), a branch of the U.S. Department of Justice, initiated the addition of new items to the National Crime Victimization Survey that are designed to uncover hate crime victimizations that go underreported to the police. The NCVS hate crime questions ask victims about the basis for their belief that the crime they experienced was motivated by prejudice or bigotry, as well as the specific behavior of the offender or evidence that may have led to the victim’s perception of bias. Crimes reported to the NCVS—sexual assaults, robbery, assault, burglary, larceny, or vandalism—with evidence of hatred toward any of these specific groups are classified as crimes motivated by hate. However, NCVS does not include crimes covered by the UCR, such as murder, arson, commercial crimes, and crimes against children under the age of 12. In addition, the NCVS does not include reports of crime from institutions, organizations, churches, schools, and businesses, although persons involved in these entities are included. The data for hate crimes from the NCVS include information about victims, offenders, and characteristics of crimes—both crimes reported to police and those not reported (U.S. Department of Justice, BJS, 2008).

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics special report on victims derived from the NCVS from July 2000 through December 2003, an annual average of 210,000 hate crime victimizations occurred. During that period, an average of 191,000 hate crime incidents involving one or more victims occurred annually in the United States. About 3% of all violent crimes and 0.2% of all property crimes revealed to the NCVS by victims were perceived to be hate crimes. Victims also indicated that 92,000 of these hate crime victimizations (approximately 44%) were reported to police. That is, NCVS data indicate that the majority of hate crime victims, like victims of many other crimes, do not report the incident to law enforcement. When the victims themselves reported to police, they did so primarily to prevent the offender from committing further offenses (35%) and to obtain help from the police (33%).

It is important to note that although several explanations may be applicable to prejudice and hate crime occurrence, no existing criminological theory can fully account for the transformation from prejudice into criminal behavior. Experts argue that in order to explain hate crimes, consideration of the interplay of a number of different factors (social, psychological, criminogenic, and contextual) as well as a wide range of aspects that contribute to hate crime (i.e., perpetrators’ motives, victims’ characteristics, and cultural ideologies about the victims’ social groups) is necessary. The criminological theories most often employed to explain hate crime are group conflict theory, social learning theory, and strain theory.

hate crime research essays

This theory is based on the fact that humans are more likely to have relationships with other humans holding similar presuppositions for the purpose of comfort, ease, and friendliness, which in turn contributes to the formation of “in-groups” and “out-groups.” The formation and development of in-group loyalty serve strong individual desires for relationship and acceptance.

In-group versus out-group conflict strongly facilitates group cohesiveness, affiliation, and identity. In addition, such conflict increases out-group rejection, as revealed by group members’ tendencies to stress between-group dissimilarities and ignore between-group similarities. Out-groups are often stereotyped, dehumanized, or perceived as dishonest or malicious, whereas the in-group is idealized as good, powerful, and wholly justified in its views and actions toward others. Previous research has consistently shown that organized in-group preferences and out-group prejudices, and sometimes hostilities, even when the out-group was one with whom in-group members had never met, had never interacted, and about whom they knew very little.

Social learning theories suggest that attitudes, values, and beliefs about individuals who belong to specific groups are learned through interaction with influencing figures, such as peers and family who reward for adopting their views. Some of the literature on perpetrators of hate crimes stresses the impact of intimate acquaintances and family members, and the influence of localized social norms on the development of a child’s prejudice. According to social learning theory, the attitudes of parents profoundly affect a child’s prejudice, as a child grows up listening to those views. That is, prejudice toward specific targets is learned and reinforced through children’s interactions with their parents, and those relations may even provide both justifications and rewards for committing acts of violence or harassment against out-group members.

Strain theory holds that crime is a product of the gap between the culturally emphasized goals (e.g., success, wealth, and material possessions) and the legitimate means available to individuals to achieve those goals (e.g., access to high-quality education, participation in social networks). While society by its very nature pressures everyone to achieve those valued goals, not everyone is able to legitimately achieve success because of unemployment, poor education, lack of skills, and so on. Those who are unlikely to legitimately achieve the goals valued by society, according to strain theory, would be placed under a “strain.” In essence, then, the frustration, or strain, caused by the desire for “success” and the inability to achieve it legitimately gives rise to criminal behavior. It is achieving society’s goals that is important and not the means of achieving them.

Although hate crime and prejudice theories provide hypotheses for why individuals develop hatred or biases toward others, there is little information on how this prejudice/ bias translates into criminal or violent action. Research examining hate crime perpetrators has indicated the most common characteristic profile, situational factors associated with hate crime, an emerging typology, and knowledge of organized hate group members.

Contrary to common belief, most hate crimes are not committed by people who belong to organized hate groups, but are generally perpetrated by individuals who are considered to be “average” teenagers or young adults. In fact, studies indicate that the most common profile of a hate crime perpetrator is that of a young, white male, who perpetrates with a small group of individuals, has had little previous contact with the criminal justice system, and is not a member of an organized hate group. Although examining overall data on hate crime perpetrators to form a broad picture of the offender may be important, it is cautioned that not all such perpetrators fit this profile. For example, a percentage of hate crime perpetrators do belong to organized hate groups, are non-white, and range in age from teenage to older adult.

There are situational factors that seem to influence and interact with the human factors that affect the occurrence and the brutality of hate crime. These situational factors include that (a) the crime is often conducted in small groups, (b) the victim is most often a stranger, and (c) the crime is expressive (verbal harassment) rather than instrumental (physical aggression).

As previously mentioned, hate crimes are usually not committed by lone offenders, or by members of organized hate groups, but by small groups of young friends. This, coupled with the fact that most hate crime offenders do not have a history of hate crime perpetration, indicates that offender motivation for hate crime may have more to do with group dynamics than individual levels of bias or prejudice. Previous research on group and authority influence has unequivocally indicated its strong persuasive power. This strong influence stems from a few important dynamics. First, engaging in a group assault allows diffusion of responsibility. In other words, acting in a group allows each individual to “blame” the others and not take full responsibility for his or her actions or feel like he or she is anonymous. Second, since hate crime offenders are typically young males, there is a likelihood that each offender may attempt to impress the others as well as encourage another member in an effort to affiliate/identify with those individuals.

Two other factors that affect the brutality of hate crime are stranger victims and the motivation of offenders. Research indicates that it is much easier to dehumanize or hate a person who is not known personally. Thus, since hate crime perpetrators most often offend against strangers, this increases the likelihood that the victim will be dehumanized and hurt significantly more. In addition, since the motivation of the offenders is typically not instrumental (e.g., to gain money), there is no end point to the offending behavior. Offenses that are instrumental have a stopping point—the assault ends when the victim hands over his or her purse or wallet. Since hate crimes are expressive, there is no end point—making higher levels of brutality more likely.

In recent years, researchers have begun to examine possible types of hate crime offenders. Thus far, four types of hate crime perpetrators have been identified: thrill seekers, reactive/defensive, mission, and retaliatory (McDevitt, Levin, & Bennett, 2002). The most common type of hate crime offender is the thrill type. As stated previously, these are usually young males who act in groups. They do not belong to organized hate groups and describe their offense motivation as being bored or looking for some excitement. Although these individuals may have some level of prejudice/ bias, their motivation seems to be influenced more by thrill seeking and peer influence. Studies indicate that this type of hate crime offender accounts for approximately two thirds of hate crimes.

The second type is the reactive or defensive type. This offender type commits a hate crime because the person feels that his or her rights or territory has been invaded. For example, the offender may engage in a hate crime because he doesn’t feel like a subordinate group member should live in his neighborhood. The third type of hate crime perpetrator is the mission type. This type is the least frequent and usually includes those individuals who are organized hate group members on a “mission” to rid the world of what/who they consider to be immoral or wrong, or to keep a race “pure” and separate. The fourth type, the retaliatory type, commits hate crime in order to “get back at” or “get even with” a group because the perpetrator witnessed or heard of this group committing hate crime against his or her own group.

The Southern Poverty Law Center indicates that there are approximately 670 different hate groups in the United States. Most organized hate crime groups focus on one or more of the following: racial bias (e.g., anti-white or anti-black), religious bias (e.g., anti-Jewish or anti-Catholic), ethnic/national origin bias (e.g., anti-Arab or anti- Hispanic), or sexual orientation bias (e.g., anti-gay or anti-transgender). Although there is no single profile of an organized hate crime group member, research has indicated that it is not necessarily the individual’s bias/ prejudice that gets the person involved, but the need to affiliate. It seems an individual’s need to belong may make the person more susceptible to recruitment and then, once a member, to become biased against particular groups. In other words, racism may not cause someone to join a hate group, but joining the hate group may cause racism.

While trends and patterns can be identified, it is impossible to know exactly what percentage of hate crimes get reported to police. In general, many victims of hate crimes do not report the crime. In addition, once a hate crime is reported, there remain problems in recording, processing, and accurately accounting for all hate crime.

There are a variety of reasons why victims of hate crimes may not report the offense to the police. Nonreporting of hate crimes is primarily a consequence of lack of trust of the police, fear of discrimination, abuse and mistreatment by law enforcement, or belief that the police are not interested in investigating such crimes. Members of certain groups that are frequently targeted for hate crimes are particularly unlikely to report a hate crime because they have poor relations with the police. This situation is reflected in the huge differences in figures that are consistently found between official police records of hate incidents against blacks or homosexuals and national and local victim surveys.

Even when hate crimes are reported to the police, many potential barriers exist between the reporting of the crime, and the offender’s eventual conviction and “counting” of the event as a hate crime. These potential barriers include police officer bias against victims and their avoidance of recording because of the additional paperwork required by the department’s hate crime policy. In addition, what is and is not classified as a hate crime varies greatly across different states. The way that hate crime is defined by different jurisdictions greatly affects what, and how much, is recorded in the official figures. Therefore, there are serious difficulties in interpreting the data because important differences exist from officer to officer and agency to agency, as well as among the various states’ records.

Little is known about the experiences of hate crime victims. It is clear, however, that race is the most common motivation for hate crime in the United States, followed by religion and sexual orientation. Depending upon the particular state law, disabled individuals and women are also common victims of hate crimes.

Racial and ethnic differences are by far the most common motivation for hate crime. Of the different races and ethnicities in the United States, African Americans have been the most common victims of hate crimes. In addition, hate crimes on the basis of ethnicity are far from rare. Americans of Hispanic/Latino, Asian, or Middle Eastern ancestries have been victimized because of their ethnicity, no matter how long their family may have lived in the United States. Hatred against these people has a long history in America. During the same time that blacks were being victimized in the South (following the conclusion of the Civil War and up to and including the 1960s), Asian Americans and Mexican Americans were receiving similar treatment in the West and Southwest. Official discrimination based on ethnic group membership went on throughout the 20th century and continues into the 21st.

In reality, the boundaries between race/ethnicity and religion may be especially unclear. Agencies may have trouble determining the group of the victim because individuals do not always fit neatly into predetermined categories. For example, in early United States history, Irish immigrants were discriminated against because of their adherence to Catholicism. However, it is clear that historically anti- Semitism has been the most universal, deep, and persistent ethnic/religious prejudice, even predating the formation of the United States. Although the situation in the United States was considerably better than in Europe, anti-Semitism was common and served as the core of almost all white supremacist doctrine in the United States as well.

Anti-Semitism is hardly extinct today. A prime factor that contributes to the continuing existence of anti- Semitism is the persistent belief by many non-Jews that Jews killed Christ. For members of the Christian Identity church, for example, hatred of Jews is not only acceptable, but it is actually required. Another factor contributing to modern-day anti-Semitism is Zionism. Many people equate Jews with Israel. When Israel takes action with which non- Jews disagree, such as Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, some of the non-Jews blame all Jewish people.

Although anti-Semitism is the most common form of hate crime based on religion, since the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon of September 11, 2001, there has been a drastic increase in hate crimes against people of the Muslim faith in the United States. For example, during 2001 (after 9/11), about 480 incidents were anti- Islamic in nature (U.S. Department of Justice, BJS, 2008).

Similar to biases based on race and ethnicity, heterosexism remains persistent in the United States. Despite recent improvement in attitudes toward gays, antigay violence is still common and widespread. The official data imply that homosexuals are one of the primary victims of hate crimes. What is unique about sexual orientation and gender identity victims is that they can also be members of any of the groups discussed in this research paper, as well as be a minority within their own family.

Antigay ideology remains institutionalized throughout America. Those who are already homophobic can defend their behaviors as socially acceptable. To those who are not especially biased but who are seeking thrills and excitement, as appears to be the case with the majority of hate crime offenders, many believe that gays are suitable targets. Another influence on antigay sentiment is religion; many religious organizations continue to denounce homosexuality, and others have pursued a specifically antigay agenda. In many cases, antigay and anti-transgender violence is probably also provoked by offenders’ perceptions that gays have violated gender roles, as gay men have voluntarily relinquished the privilege of male domination over women. Heterosexual men’s attitudes toward gay men are much more negative than those toward lesbians. Lesbians are seen as less threatening to masculinity and the male gender role. Thus, homosexual and transgendered men are significantly more likely to be victims of hate crime than lesbians and transgendered women.

As of 2006, a total of 29 of the 48 states that have hate crime laws include sexual orientation and 7 include gender identity. In addition, there are currently no federal hate crime laws that protect victims based upon sexual orientation or gender identity, even though these hate crimes tend to be the most brutal and deadly. In fact, transgendered males are significantly more likely to be murdered than all other groups including African American males (U.S. Department of Justice, BJS, 2008).

Each year the FBI records few hate crimes that were perpetrated based on the victim’s physical or mental disability. However, there is good reason to think that the true number is much higher. That is, some victims, especially those with mental disabilities, may be unable to report the crimes, police officers may be unlikely to categorize their victimization as a hate crime, and most states do not include disability in the law and therefore do not keep count of these crimes. Compared with all the other latent victims of hate crimes, disabled people are a highly vulnerable population. They are more likely to rely on other people who might take advantage of them for daily necessities, and they may be physically or mentally unable to protect themselves from predation. Some insist that crimes committed on the basis of disability should not be considered hate crimes because these offenders do not truly hate the victims; they are merely choosing them because they are vulnerable.

The inclusion of gender within hate crime laws has been controversial and currently is not included in federal law or in the UCR reporting of hate crime statistics. Some argue that there are potential dangers in treating gender-based crimes as hate crimes. One possibility is that, given the large number of rapes and domestic violence incidents, gender-based hate crimes could overwhelm the area of hate crimes, and other forms of bias-motivated crime might not get the attention they deserve. On the other hand, rape and domestic abuse, which surely merit consideration in their own right, could possibly receive less attention under the broader rubric of hate crimes.

Crimes motivated by hate and prejudice are nothing new; however, recent hate crime legislation has presented the criminal justice system and society with a unique type of offender.As stated previously, these crimes are distinctive in that they concern both criminal behavior and the motivation behind the behavior. Thus, most agree that the criminal justice system needs to consider both when responding to this type of offender.

Many, if not all, subordinate groups within the United States have had a number of hostile and prejudiced encounters with the police that have increased the likelihood that they will hold negative perceptions of law enforcement. Subordinate group members have reported feeling both under-protected and over-policed by law enforcement. The issue of the over-policing of minority groups can be traced back over the course of the past century when minority communities felt that the police used oppressive tactics and operations disproportionately targeted at minorities. Subordinate groups describe under-policing as law enforcement delaying their response to incidents, not doing enough to apprehend the offender, being disinterested and impolite, and making mistakes or handling matters badly. In other words, minority communities increasingly saw themselves as the targets of policing. Because trust and confidence in the police is lost, the minority groups do not turn to the police for assistance when they are subjected to ongoing violence and harassment. In fact, hate crimes in general are significantly underreported.

There are a number of positive activities that the police can undertake to improve their response to hate crimes. While the police cannot directly lessen hate, they can contribute considerably to the establishment of an environment that lessens the chance that hatred will result in interpersonal violence by providing a fair, effective, and open service to all members of their community. If the police can be fair, effective, and open, then it follows that subordinate group members will be more willing to report crimes as well as assist law enforcement efforts. In addition, if police utilize a deliberately broad and inclusive, but specific, definition of hate crime, it would restrict the discretion of individual officers and possibly encourage better recording of hate crimes. Several jurisdictions have responded to the need by requiring hate crime training while police officers are at the law enforcement academy, using specially trained investigators for hate crime, or forming specialist investigative units with officers dedicated to hate crime investigations.

As with other types of crime, the courts main response to hate crime is to mete out punishment. However, since hate crimes include both motivation and illegal behavior, rehabilitation is also necessary. The following methods have been utilized or discussed as ways to work with the hate crime offender: the punishment model, the restorative justice model, counseling or education programs, and civil remedies.

Hate crime offenders can be responded to by simply placing them in prison as punishment. However, few believe that prison punishment alone will be enough to increase the offender’s tolerance of others—and may even increase a hate crime offender’s bias, since most prison situations are quite segregated along racial and ethnic lines. In fact, many prisons are rife with hate group recruitment and membership. Most agree that some form of rehabilitation of the hate crime perpetrator in addition to the punishment is warranted.

The restorative justice model emphasizes the restoration of the victim and community as much as possible. One component of restorative justice includes victim–offender mediation. During mediation, the offender and victim come together; the victim has the opportunity to explain how the offense impacted him or her and ask any questions of the offender, and the offender has the opportunity to provide apologies and explanations. This offers the venue for the victim to speak of his or her experience and allows the offender to understand his or her impact on the victim and to obtain a more realistic picture of the victim (which is helpful because much prejudice against the victim is based on stereotypes and myths of that particular subordinate group). The goal is for the people involved to reach an agreeable reconciliation.

Another approach to rehabilitating hate crime offenders is to provide them with some sort of educational or counseling program. Depending on the offender’s unique circumstances, the rehabilitation could involve several aspects such as diversity education, individual or group treatment of prejudice, mentorship of the offender by a member of the victim’s subordinate group, and visiting relevant museums (e.g., the Holocaust Museum). Because a portion of hate crime offenders have a history of violence, it may be important to not only focus treatment on bias but also to provide anger management or interpersonal effectiveness treatment as a part of the offender’s rehabilitation.

Finally, some states offer civil remedies to the victims of hate crime. For example, the state of Illinois offers victims of hate crimes free attorneys that will sue hate crime offenders for physical and emotional damage (in addition to free attorneys for criminal court). Previous victims of hate crimes have been successful at suing both hate crime offenders as well as organized hate groups to which the offender belonged.

While responding to hate crime involves working or dealing with offenders or victims once a crime has happened, preventing hate crime focuses on making appropriate changes in society that would prevent future violence related to hate and bias. Since it is known that individuals are not born with prejudice, bias, or hate—that these things are learned—it becomes obvious that these harmful attitudes and feelings can be prevented. Thus, educating individuals to value and embrace diversity would work to reduce prejudice and bias. Several anti-hate organizations have developed in response to hate crime in order to track these crimes and offer prevention services.

A. Preventing Hate Crime through Education

Education and training of individuals to prevent future hate crime and decrease prejudice may take several forms, including school curriculum change, training for educators, specific classroom/school experiences and programs, and public awareness campaigns. Researchers, educators, and individuals who work with specific anti-hate groups have suggested curricula, programs, and exercises that have either been demonstrated to reduce prejudice or seem promising to do so.

Research indicates that typically a certain type of interaction is needed to change bias—specifically, individuals who are different from one another working together to complete a goal. For example, Jigsaw Classrooms have been developed and utilized that reduce stereotypes. In the Jigsaw Classrooms, children are placed in diverse small groups that require each child to “teach” the other children part of the lesson that they are required to learn. In order for the children to do well, they have to rely on the others in the group—as each student holds a piece of the “puzzle.” Examining the effectiveness of this technique has indicated it serves to help the children’s willingness to work together, increase friendship between diverse students, and increase subordinate group children’s grades.

An increasingly popular way to reduce hate and bias has been through public awareness campaigns. These campaigns may consist of mass media publicity (e.g., MTV playing The Matthew Shepard Story and listing names of hate crime victims as part of an anti-hate campaign) or specific drives by independent organizations, advocacy groups, or government or law enforcement agencies. These campaigns and drives may provide information and awareness through literature, media programming, advertising, and fund-raising. Research has generally indicated positive outcomes from these types of campaigns.

As there are several hundred organized hate groups, fortunately there are also numerous organized anti-hate groups. These anti-hate organizations range from local and regional to national and international groups. The largest of them will be discussed briefly.

Partners Against Hate (PAH) is an organization funded by the U.S. government that offers education and tools for young people and professionals who work and interact with youth, parents, law enforcement officials, educators, and community leaders. The Partners Against Hate Web site provides numerous links to educational materials, training programs, and tools for individuals interested in reducing bias and hate.

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is a Jewish group initially founded in 1913 to reduce Jewish stereotypes and prejudice. During the 1960s, the ADL broadened its scope to include civil rights issues. Today, the ADL is one of the United States’ largest civil rights/human relations agencies that fight anti-Semitism and all forms of bigotry. The ADL develops materials, programs, and services through over 30 regional and satellite offices throughout the United States and abroad.

The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) was founded in 1971 as a civil rights organization. The SPLC is headquartered in Alabama and monitors organized hate. As the organization was founded by two civil rights attorneys, the SPLC has provided legal counsel in a number of prominent cases against white supremacists and hate group organizations. Since its development, the organization has also become active in educational efforts through publishing resources for educators, parents, and children. The SPLC publishes a semiannual magazine aimed at teachers called Teaching Tolerance.

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) was founded in 1973 to promote the civil rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people. This organization tracks antigay and -transgendered violence, advocates for rights, and provides educational activities and information. The NGLTF’s Web site provides information on each state’s legal issues related to the rights of gays and lesbians, information on gay violence and hate crime in general, and links for several informational documents and manuals.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center (SWC) was founded in 1977 by a rabbi who was a Holocaust survivor and is an international Jewish human rights organization. This anti-hate organization focuses its efforts on education by operating the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles, California. The SWC also offers training to educators and law enforcement officials on diversity and hate crime.

There are several other anti-hate organizations and agencies throughout the United States that focus both generally on combating hate and specifically on particular hate problems. For example, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) is committed to empowering Arab Americans, defending the rights of Arab Americans, and advocating a balanced Middle East policy. The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) works to foster sound public policies, laws, and programs to safeguard the civil rights of Hispanics/Latinos living in the United States and to empower that community to fully participate in U.S. society. All of these organizations, big and small, work to offer knowledge and aid to diverse groups within the United States and to serve communities by providing resources.

Hate crime is defined as an illegal act against a person, institution, or property that is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender’s bias against the victim’s group membership. Although hate crime is a relatively new category of crime, the United States has a long history of biased actions against individuals because of their race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, and gender. Since the late 1980s and early 1990s, the federal government and states have collected data on hate crime occurrences as well as developed specific laws against such crimes. There are differences between the federal and state laws as well as differences among the states. Most differences include varied group coverage in the law. Because of these differences and the underreporting of incidents, the true rates remain unknown.

Research in the last few decades has indicated that African Americans are the most likely victims of hate crime in the United States, followed by people of the Jewish faith and individuals of differing sexual orientation or gender identity. Initial typology study has indicated the most common type of hate crime offender commits hate crime because of thrill/excitement, followed by defensive, retaliatory, and mission reasons. Research has also specified that the most common hate crime perpetrator is a young, white male, who is not associated with an organized hate group. Research also shows that brutality is more likely for this crime because of the group perpetration, victims are typically strangers, and the crime is expressive rather than instrumental in nature.

Law enforcement, the overall criminal justice system, and anti-hate organizations have developed programs and tools to help respond to and prevent hate crime. For example, several police agencies have developed hate crime teams, several jurisdictions require treatment for hate crime perpetrators, and both national and regional anti-hate organizations have developed Web sites to provide communities with information and aid in the prevention of these horrific crimes. It is encouraging to know that as hate organizations have developed over the United States’ history, so too have anti-hate groups that work just as hard in prevention.

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Free Research Paper On Victims Of Hate Crime

Type of paper: Research Paper

Topic: United States , Social Issues , Discrimination , Hate , Society , Community , Crime , Criminal Justice

Words: 3000

Published: 02/05/2020

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Introduction

People normally have norms in the society. Usually, that which is not normal according to societal standards is described as queer. In most cases, this is viewed with a lot of prejudice. It is thus received with a lot of violence, and this is legally referred to as hate crime. Various definitions and descriptions have been used to explain the phrase “hate crime”. Initially, the phrase referred to a violation of criminal nature that is triggered by extreme hate. This definition was developed in order to specify the reason behind the hate. This essay will adopt the definition by the Uniform Crime Reporting Survey that states “hate crime is a criminal violation motivated by hate, based on race, national or ethnic origin, language, color, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation or any other similar factor” (Harlow 5). In the United States of America, hate crime is recognized as a legal offence in the criminal code. The specific chapters that address this crime are; three hundred and eighteen, and three hundred and nineteen.

Hate crimes have always existed all over the world, especially in regions rich in cultural and social diversity. This has been happening regardless of the fact that the world is becoming globalised, and education has spread almost all over the world. These crimes can be identified by studying the background of the offender (Anderson, Dyson and Brooks 122). Normally, these are recurring offences, and they are easily identifiable through past evidences. There has been a concern in the increase of these heinous acts. Major groups of people affected include; minority communities like the blacks, homosexuals, the physically disabled, mentally disabled and those belonging to certain religions among others. This essay will analyse the extent of hate crime in the society and how to improve this kind of treatment. The essay will strive on developing a new program that is meant to aid how such victims are treated.

Statistics on Hate Crime

There is overwhelming statistics on the spread of hate crime all over the world. A study done by Levin and Jack reveal worrying trends in the crime (Levin and Jack 113). A similar sentiment is echoed by Harlow (8), who also explains that this is becoming an almost normal trend in some communities. Evidence proves that out of all incarcerations, about sixteen percent (16%) are related to hate crime. This was a conclusion made after a worldwide survey. In the United States of America, a large percentage of the perpetrators came from the white community (Levin and Jack 118). Other white dominated countries depicted the same trends. This was especially so when it came to crimes against a person based on colour (Doug, 981). It is estimated that, in 1996 there were one thousand nine hundred and sixty reported cases of hate crime against homosexuals. Reported cases based on racial bias were at a standing figure of one thousand and ten. By the year 1999, the number of reported hate crime incidents had increased to seven thousand eight hundred and seventy six (Harlow 19). Of these, one thousand and ninety were related to skin colour or rather racial bias. The most recent data was collected in the year 2009 where hate crimes based on skin colour were quite high in Canada, Europe and the United States of America (James and Kimberly 187). In other countries especially in Africa, the crimes based on sexual orientation were on the increase. This was largely attributed to cultural beliefs (Doug 989). Generally, the increase depicts a trend of not less than five percent (5%) per annum. This increase has been attributed to various factors. Social media has been shown to have the greatest impact. This heinous crime was also common in places that had a larger diversity. For instance; hate crimes based on racial ethnicity was common in the United States of America. On the other hand, victims on hate crimes against sexual orientation were reported mostly from large African cities (Iganski 630). Anti Semitic hate crimes are common in Britain than in any other part of the world. Anti Christian hate crimes occurred in Muslim dominated countries such as the United Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Apart from statistical data, further research has been done to show the extremity of this problem. Some authors insist that the data collected is insufficient because most hate crime cases go unreported (Iganski, 629). Apparently, about thirty four percent of all hate crime cases go unreported (Harlow 12). Various other authors collected data from the ground that paints a similar picture (Doug 980; Lawrence 82). As such, the extent of the problem is a little too extreme than depicted. This is also the reason why it is difficult to mitigate this problem. Anderson, Dyson and Brooks conducted a research on why cases go unreported. According to their research, most people failed to report these cases because of the previous treatment of such cases by the police (Anderson, Dyson and Brooks 126). The police were accused of taking the cases too lightly and even letting the perpetrator go unpunished. Some victims failed to report because of fear and the fact that the case did not seem significant enough. Moreover, most of the reported cases were those that had happened more than once (Harlow 22). Further data on the subject reveals that reports on hate crimes vary from one region to another. As such, it is almost difficult to estimate the extent of the problem. It is also impossible to make a holistic conclusion on the extent of hate crimes worldwide. Harlow (12) did a research on the extent of hate crimes in various regions. The data collected revealed that the United States of America has the highest prevalent rates of hate crime. The lowest rates were reported in Africa and Canada. A number of factors were attributed to these discrepancies. First, the extent of hate crime is dependent on culture which inculcates prejudice. Secondly, the community determines the extent of the spread of this form of crime. The kind of punishment offered to the perpetrator also determines this.

Populations Impacted

Apparently, hate crime impacts all forms of populations. It is dependent on the community and the environment within which one is found. However, specific populations are affected all over the world. Racial discrimination has been one of the main causes of hate crime (McDonald and Hogue 2). The minority groups such as blacks, Hispanics and Asians in white dominated countries are affected in this way. There have also been several reports against the Semites in white dominated country. Skin colour is a determining factor in this case. Sexual orientation is also a determining factor in this case. The lesbians, bisexuals, homosexuals and gays are affected. Mostly, people oriented sexually in this manner are considered queer (James and Kimberly 140). As such, the society treats them differently. In most cases, there has been extreme violence against such people. The physically and mentally challenged in the society sometimes experience the same issues. In some societies, mentally and physically challenged people are deemed insignificant in society. They are thus treated with a lot of disrespect and sometimes violence (Doug 984). Hate crime is also reported based on religion bias. The type of religion preferred is dependent on the history and the majority of people found in a certain religion. For instance; reports show that in places like Canada and the United States of America, Muslims are hated by the majority Christians. On the other hand, in Muslim dominated countries, other religions are looked down upon. The hate is too severe that sometimes death is imminent. In some instances, gender has been used as a basis for hate crime. Women are mostly affected in this case. This is especially so in places where culture plays an essential role in shaping the society (McVeigh, Michael and Thoroddur 844). A typical example in this case is where physical abuse of women is considered normal. People of a certain age are also discriminated against. For instance; senior citizens are not fully accepted in some societies. This is probably why they are taken to nursing homes. The indirect victims in this case are people affiliated to the victims (McVeigh, Michael and Thoroddur 844). In places where hate crime has permeated the society, it is impossible to live normally. A myriad of literature highlights the effects of any form of stigmatisation to an individual and those around him or her. A society affected by hate crime is unable to function properly.

Costs of Hate Crime to the Society

The society is affected in a variety of ways. First, they serve to isolate groups targeted by perpetrators (James and Kimberly 142). Once this happens, development is hindered. The alienated societies are incapable of developing their lives in a positive manner. Polarization between different groups is also quite common. This fans the flares of hatred between communities. Consequently, a number of conflicts occur due to this. A typical example is the mass murder of Jews that occurred during the Second World War. The extremists also form groups like the Ku Klux Klan which are alienated against a certain group of people. Violent victimisation also carries the risk of severe psychological distress. Research shows that the psychological impact on some victims is severe than in normal crimes (Doug 194). Post traumatic stress disorders, depression and mental health problems are likely to occur in such victims. As a result, the victim is unable to perform and live normally. Such people are reported to have problems like recurrent nightmares, irritability and general health problems that cause inability to function normally. In such an instance, the society loses the productive nature of such a person. Increased financial undertakings for treating such an individual are also undertaken by the society at large. This is especially so when the individual becomes a danger to self and others. Threats are used during hate crimes majorly to scare the community with immutable characteristics. A subliminal message is passed to communities with similar characteristics. This reduces the feeling of safety and security in an individual and a community as a whole (Anderson, Dyson and Brooks 139). Fear has been attributed as a major cause on the loss of productivity of an individual. A good example is the inability of openly gay students being unable to walk freely in some schools due to fear. Also, if this occurs at the work place, the relationship between employees is affected making the environment non- conducive for work. Possibility of legal suits is also quite high further increasing financial burdens and misuse of resources. Iganski (56) states that hate crimes are common during certain times like during economic distress. In this case, the differences within the society are magnified, and this makes it difficult to solve the problem. In some cases, solving such problems may take longer than normal. Generally hate crime is detrimental to development and societal growth.

How victims of these forms of victimization treated in the criminal justice system and society at large

The treatment of victims of hate crime is largely dependent on the society, one is found (Lawrence 45). In some cases, the rate of hate crime is quite high, and the practices associated with such activities are extreme. In this case, the society tends to alienate itself from the victims. This is because people fear being associated with the victims and facing a similar treatment. In places where the hate crime is not extreme, the victims are usually tolerated. Some activist groups form to protect such individuals. The treatment by the justice system is also dependent on the dominating community. In most cases, the black community has complained of being mistreated by the justice system mainly because it is dominated by the white community. This is quite common in places like the United States of America and Canada. In some cases, the justice system has been biased in sentencing people from certain backgrounds. For example, most of the inmates on death row are from the black communities. It is also easier for people from the Arab community to be incarcerated for terrorism related crimes. This form of treatment has led to lack of trust in this system.

What can be done to improve the treatment of these victims

With the far reaching concern in the increase of hate crimes, various researchers have come up with ways of mitigating these heinous acts. As a way of ensuring that societies shun from such acts, severe punishment has been suggested (James and Kimberly 145). This will pass a strong message to like minded people. Furthermore, the increase in this crime has been attributed to lack of reporting. The society or community should be provided with a specific centre where the crime will be reported. Consequently, perpetrators and like minded people will shun from these activities. This will improve the treatment of the victims by the society at large. New programs would be beneficial? Develop a Program to Provide Assistance to Those Victims. How can we prevent the particular form of victimization? As a way of ensuring that this problem is mitigated, expertises in different fields have joined hands to curb this problem. However, the prevalence of the problem is still at an all time high. This implies that the methods employed do not have any effects. Further research into the subject suggests that a combination of methods can be quite effective (Perry 101). First, it is important to consider the source of the problem (Levin and Jack 174). Educating the community on the importance of diversity can go a long way in ensuring harmonious existence. This should be made a compulsory subject from the lowest level of education. In this way, diversity will be a normal occurrence. Secondly, the communities that are likely to be affected should be identified. Counselling in this case should begin as early as possible. Preparing individuals at an earlier stage will reduce the extent of the trauma (Anderson, Dyson and Brooks 150). Communities should also be encouraged to engage in intercultural activities. For instance; setting up a specific day where communities can perform activities common in their cultures is an effective way of ensuring this (Perry 127). This can be done through folk dances, intercultural competitions and even extravaganzas. In this way, societies will stop viewing each other as competitors. The police and the justice system requires reshuffling to enable other communities to participate at similar levels. In some cases, victims have reported lack of action by the police because the police deemed their cases unimportant. This is especially common in hate crime based on racial bias. The justice system is accused of basing judgement using the same bias. The reason given for this is that most of the jurors, legal counsels and even judges are from a particular community (McDonald and Hogue 127). Massive educational campaigns should be conducted to increase cultural awareness. The program should include a school curriculum where children will be taught on the importance of cultural diversity. There should be festivals and celebrations dedicated on celebrating cultural diversity. Offering early counselling should be part of this program. Also, communities should be allowed to settle anywhere in the country. The correctional system should be strict on how to handle hate crimes. This is a good way of deterring crimes and communicating a message to the rest of the community (James and Kimberly 121). Preventing hate crime should begin from the identification of the source. First, the offenders should be deprogrammed (McVeigh, Michael and Thoroddur 865). This indoctrination of hate and separatism can be gotten rid of by identifying the source of the hate. The victim should be counselled as a way of deprogramming. In this way, the individual will come to terms with their feelings (Perry 148). Eventually, this form of hate will be exempted by inculcating the fact that every individual is equal regardless of culture, age, gender or even religion. Hate crime is on the increase regardless of the spread of globalisation. As a result, the problem is becoming an endemic. If it is not dealt with, it is likely that it could lead to problems in society. Therefore, there is a need to correct this problem. To this end, the adoption of some of the suggestions provided above could be used to correct this hatred. Moreover, further research should be done on the subject in order to develop better methods of curbing this crime.

Works Cited

Anderson, James, Laronistine Dyson and Willie Brooks. Preventing Hate Crime and Profiling Hate Crime Offenders . The Western Journal of Black Studies, 26(3):121- 153, 2002 http://www.questia.com/library/1G1-96195835/preventing-hate-crime-and- profiling-hate-crime-offenders Doug, Meyer. “Evaluating the Severity of Hate-motivated Violence: Intersectional Differences among LGBT Hate Crime Victims.” Sociology. 44(5): 980-995, 2010, Print. Harlow, Caroline. “Hate crime reported by victims and police.” Bureau of justice statistics. November 2005 retrieved May, 2013 from http://bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/hcrvp.pdf Iganski, Paul. Hate crimes hurt more. American behavioral scientist. 45(4): 626-638, 2001. Print. James, Jacobs, and Potter Kimberly. Hate Crimes: Criminal Law & Identity Politics. London: Oxford University Press, 2001. http://www.questia.com/library/91850700/hate-crimes-criminal-law-identity- politics Lawrence, Frederick. Punishing Hate: Bias Crimes under American Law. New York: Harvard University Press, 2002. http://www.questia.com/library/118148911/punishing-hate-bias-crimes-under- american-law Levin, Jack, and Jack McDevitt. Hate Crimes: The Rising Tide of Bigotry and Bloodshed. New York: Plenum, 1993, Print. McDonald, Susan., and Andrea Hogue. An exploration of the needs of victims of hate crimes: A report. Department of Justice of Canada, 2007. http://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/rp- pr/cj-jp/victim/rr07_vic1/rr07_vic1.pdf McVeigh, Rory, “Welch Michael and Bjarnason Thoroddur. Hate Crime Reporting as a Successful Social Movement Outcome.” American Sociological Association. 68: 843- 867, 2003, Print. Perry, Barbara. In the Name of Hate: Understanding Hate Crimes. New York: Routledge, 2001. Print.

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  3. Critically explore the rise of 'hate crime' in twenty first century Essay

    hate crime research essays

  4. 😂 Research paper on hate crimes. Hate Crimes Essay. 2019-02-02

    hate crime research essays

  5. (PDF) Hate Crime

    hate crime research essays

  6. A Comparative Analysis of Hate Crime Legislation: A Report to the Hate

    hate crime research essays

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  1. Full article: What is a hate crime?

    Abstract. The term hate crime is instinctively understood across policy and practice domains, but is defined differently across contexts. Whilst it is accepted that a standard universal and internationally accepted definition of a hate crime is not possible or desirable, I will seek to create common definitional boundaries for the term hate crime, which allows for jurisdictional flexibility ...

  2. Addressing Hate Crime in the 21st Century: Trends, Threats, and

    Hate crimes, often referred to as bias-motivated crimes, have garnered greater public attention and concern as political rhetoric in the United States and internationally has promoted the exclusion of people based on their group identity. This review examines what we know about the trends in hate crime behavior and the legal responses to this problem across four main domains. First, we ...

  3. PDF Research report 102: Causes and motivations of hate crime

    The Commission's report on Prejudice and Unlawful (Abrams, Swift and Mahmood, 2016) concludes that 'little research has attempted to explore the empirical link between prejudiced attitudes and discriminatory behaviours' (p. 133). Our review of the literature concurs with this finding in relation to hate crime.

  4. Connecting the Past to the Future: Hate Crime in America

    3. One could argue that the antecedents for modern hate crime legislation lie in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments or in the seminal U.S. Supreme Court decision of Brown v.Board of Education (1954). However, in 1981 the Anti-Defamation League drafted the model legislation for hate crimes that stood to facilitate state legislatures (for additional information see Freeman [1992-1993] or ...

  5. ≡Essays on Hate Crime. Free Examples of Research Paper Topics, Titles

    Andrew Sullivan's "What's so Bad About Hate": Examining Hate Crime. 2 pages / 805 words. Hate is defined as an intensely hostile aversion, compounded of anger and fear (The New Webster's). In Andrew Sullivan's essays, he discusses a specific kind of hate: the hate crime. A hate crime is a crime motivated by racial, sexual, or other ...

  6. Hate Crime Research: Design and Measurement Strategies for Improving

    The author of four books and more than 100 essays, his research spans a wide array of topics: hate crime, prejudice, voting behavior, partisanship, and campaign finance. He has also written extensively on social science research methods and is co-author of the textbook Field Experiments: Design, Analysis, and Interpretation (W.W. Norton Press ...

  7. Hate Crime Essays & Research Papers

    According to the United States Department of Justice, there have been 7,106 single-bias incidents of hate crimes totaling 8,493 victims in 2017. The most common motivation of hate crimes is race and ethnicity. In fact, 58.1% of those hate crimes were motivated by race and ethnicity (Justice.gov,2017).

  8. How can Community-Based Participatory Research Address Hate Crimes and

    Reports of hate crimes in Canada have increased by 72% from 2019 to 2021 (Moreau, 2022). Hate crimes harm those directly victimized and members of targeted communities (Erentzen & Schuller, 2020; Perry & Alvi, 2011). Many Canadian stakeholders advocate for increased community engagement in preventative and responsive interventions to this increasing concern.

  9. Using Research to Improve Hate Crime Reporting and Identification

    A recent series of evidence-based research initiatives supported by the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) is helping to narrow this critical knowledge gap and illuminate a better path forward. The study findings fill in vital details on causes of hate crime underreporting in various communities, including.

  10. (PDF) Book Review Responding to Hate Crime: The case for connecting

    Responding to Hate Crime: The case for. connecting policy and research. Neil Chakraborti and Jon Garland (eds) £66.00, Policy Press, 2014. This collection of essays, contributed by experts ...

  11. Hate crimes are on the rise in the U.S. What are the psychological effects?

    A 2020 study found experiences of hate are associated with poor emotional wellbeing such as feelings of anger and shame. Victims tend to experience poor mental health, including depression, anxiety, and suicidal behavior. Some research also points to the finding that the experience of hate-motivated behavior can result in blaming of and lower ...

  12. Current Topics: An Undergraduate Research Guide : Hate Crimes

    This collection of essays is the result of his unparalleled research in this vital area of study. Ehrlich introduces the ten dimensions of America's social heritage that are necessary for a complete understanding of prejudice and coherently explains the complex differencesbetween ethnoviolence and hate crimes.

  13. Hate Crime Essays: Examples, Topics, & Outlines

    Hate Crimes Incidents Occur Nationally Between 6 000. PAGES 6 WORDS 2321. Hate crimes incidents occur nationally between 6,000 and 8,000 times annually, and many be increased by traumatic national events. Hate crime rates spiked in 2001, but have steadily decreased since then, though hate crimes between religious groups have increased slightly.

  14. Topic Guide

    The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994 defines a hate crime as a crime in which the victim is targeted because of his or her "actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, or sexual orientation.". Some legal scholars believe that a more precise term is bias crime, as many ...

  15. Hate Crimes in the United States

    The term "hate crime", existing as a legal concept for approximately 30 years, designates the criminal offence which is motivated (at least partially) by the offender's prejudice or bias toward the victim's racial, ethnic, gender, sexual identity, or other social group membership. Even though this term is well-known in the contemporary ...

  16. Hate Crimes: Prevalence in the UK, Theories and Tackling ...

    Social Learning Theory is the idea that people learn through observing others behaviour, attitudes and the resulting behaviours (Bandura, 1977). This theory could explain homophobic hate crime. As prejudice can be learned from parents in two ways: it can be taught, or caught (Allport, 1954).

  17. Hate Crimes Essays: Examples, Topics, & Outlines

    8. Revenge as a Form of Justice in the Eyes of the Victimized. 9. The Cycle of Violence and Revenge in Criminal Acts. 10. The Consequences of Seeking Revenge in Cases of Crime.... Read More. View our collection of hate crimes essays. Find inspiration for topics, titles, outlines, & craft impactful hate crimes papers.

  18. Hate Crimes Essay

    Free Essays from Bartleby | Hate Crimes Hate crimes, two small words with a very big meaning. ... While hate crime laws infringe on free speech rights, acts of hate should be criminalized because groups of hate crimes have had a huge impact on social behavior for a long period of time, hate crimes victimize ... As such, research (Herek, Gillis ...

  19. Hate crime Free Essay Examples And Topic Ideas

    Words: 538 Pages: 2 4844. Hate crimes are crimes that are committed against a specific person because of a person's race, religion, and sexual orientation and usually results in murder. Hate develops from someone having ill feelings about the perceived victim (Lewis, 2014). An example of a hate crime is 9/11.

  20. Free Essays on Hate Crime, Examples, Topics, Outlines

    The reasons behind most hate crimes are racism, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, sexual orientation, gender identity, and religion - many hate crime essays are concerned with these topics. Our samples of essays on hate crimes help students to become more acquainted with the subject and benefit their writing considerably.

  21. Hate Crime Research Paper

    This research paper will present the history of hate crime law, the scope of the problem, the theory and psychology behind hateful/prejudicial behaviors, characteristics of perpetrators and victims, policing hate crime, and responding to and preventing hate crime. II. Hate Crime Laws.

  22. Criminal Investigations and Hate Crimes Research Paper

    A hate crime is an example of offenses impacting negatively on the lives of people. It is a form of offense that is motivated by sexual, racial, or prejudice. It involves violence in one form or the other (Dunbar, 2006). Some of the cases reported are motivated by religion, race, disability, or sexual orientation.

  23. Free Research Paper On Victims Of Hate Crime

    This essay will adopt the definition by the Uniform Crime Reporting Survey that states "hate crime is a criminal violation motivated by hate, based on race, national or ethnic origin, language, color, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation or any other similar factor" (Harlow 5).