Hate crimes are a typical type of crimes that are motivated by prejudice based on race, religion, sex, disability etc. (CPS, 2004). It usually involves violence. According to FBI report the hate crimes increased by 7% this year in USA (Masood, 2017).
The study done by Devitt, Levin, and Bennett (2002) broadly classified 4 types of personalities that commit hate crimes:
Thrill-seeking: Commits hate crime just for the sake of adventure or excitement.
Defensive: Commits hate crime to protect their resources when they see a threat.
Retaliatory: Commits hate crime to take revenge against some kind of insult or attack.
Mission: Offenders whose aim is to finish off the people or grou hate crime offenders p they do not like.
When it comes to individual profile there is no set profile of the hate crime offenders. But majorly people who are young and belong to socially impaired families become the offenders of hate crime (Nancy, 2008).
There were 7121 victims of hate crimes in year 2015 FBI (2015). The hate crime done on racial grounds majorly included anti- black crimes, anti –white crimes and Hispanics. Crimes due to regional bias mainly targeted Jews, Muslims and Protestants. Other targeted groups were gay men and transgender women. This year showed an increase in crimes against Blacks and Muslims than any other group.
Causes of hate crime differ according to situation, location and offender. Some of the major causes of hate crimes are - any past experience of the offender (any humiliation, insult or assault faced by the offender by the embers of a particular section), ignorant about the facts, threatened by a particular section etc. Reasons can be many but effects of the hate crimes are destructive for country. It creates long duration distress among the residents of the country. Hate crime, not only physically and emotionally affects the victim, but also creates terror in the whole community to which the victim belonged.
Actions from the society and government that can minimise the occurrence of hate crimes:
- Programmes on hate crime awareness should be conducted.
- Education and training should be given so that people come out as responsible citizens and take a stand against hate crimes.
- Social and cultural gatherings should be encouraged to promote unity and harmony in society.
- More effective and better laws are required.
References
Cps.gov.uk, (2004). Hate Crime what is it?. Retrieved from http://www.cps.gov.uk/northeast/victims_and_witnesses/hate_crime/
Federal Bureau of Investigation, (2015). Hate Crime by Jurisdiction. Retrieved from https://ucr.fbi.gov/hate-crime/2015/topic-pages/jurisdiction_final
Masood, F (2017). Hate Crimes in US Rising, Particularly in Big Cities. Voa news USA. Retrieved from https://www.voanews.com/a/us-hate-crimes-rising-particularly-in-big-cities/3756604.html
McDevitt, J., Levin, J., & Bennett, S. (2002). Hate crime offenders: An expanded typology. Journal of Social Issues, 58, 303–318.
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