hate crime
Last updatedWhat to know
“Hate” in the context of a “hate crime” refers to bias instead of simply rage or anger, but the type of crime may vary from conspiracy to vandalism to assault or murder. A hate crime as defined by the Justice Department is “a crime motivated by bias against [perceived or actual] race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability.” (Links in this quote added by Language, Please.)
Hate crime laws, per the Conversation, “punish motive; the prosecutor must convince the judge or jury that the victim was targeted because of their race, religion, sexual orientation or other protected characteristic.” Hate crimes have been on the rise in the US in recent years, particularly crimes against people based on their race. Hate crimes based on antisemitism, or hatred of Jewish people, have also increased.
Hate crimes are difficult to prosecute for several reasons:
- Hate crime laws vary by state.
- The federal government doesn’t allocate enough resources to prosecute every potential hate crime as a hate crime.
- The focus is on motive, which is not always explicitly revealed and can be difficult to prove.
Some of the factors investigators may use to determine if a hate crime has been committed:
- Were slurs or other derogatory terms used?
- Does the alleged assailant have a history of homophobia, sexism, racism, or other discriminatory behaviors in person and/or through their social media accounts?
- Does the alleged assailant target based on locations?
Since the legal standard for a hate crime is narrow and may be difficult to determine, especially in a breaking news situation, adding hedging language such as “possible” or “alleged” may be necessary until further information in available. Declaring something is a hate crime or saying it “appears to be racially motivated,” if that motivation is not explicit, can contribute to misinformation. But being too cautious in explaining potential bias can elide essential information — with the 2021 Atlanta spa shootings, for instance, many media outlets repeated, without interrogating the claim, a quote from a law enforcement official that the shooter “did not appear to be motivated by racism,” even though the killer targeted primarily Asian women at Asian-owned businesses.
Additional resources
- Glossary of Terms: Race, Equity and Social Justice (International City/County Management Association)
- Learn about Hate Crimes (Department of Justice)
- What is a hate crime? The narrow legal definition makes it hard to charge and convict (The Conversation)
Summary
A hate crime as defined by the Justice Department is “a crime motivated by bias against [perceived or actual] race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability.” Since the legal standard for a hate crime is narrow and may be difficult to determine, especially in a breaking news situation, adding hedging language such as “possible” or “alleged” may be necessary until further information is available.