Avon and Somerset Constabulary - Examples of hate crime

Some fictional examples of hate incidents and crimes:

1) What happened?

"I was out with my friends in a bar when a drunken man called me an offensive name about my sexuality. He pushed me and then punched me in the face, which made my cheek go red and bruised."

Is this a hate crime? Yes, you should report it.

Comments: Homophobic abuse and punching are examples of verbal abuse and physical assault. You can experience homophobic abuse regardless if you are gay, lesbian, bisexual or straight. The offence was committed regardless of the actual sexual orientation of the victim.

2) What happened?

"I took my family out shopping for the day. We were in the town centre, as we walked past a couple sitting on a bench they said "**** off back to your own country" and spat at us."

Is it a hate crime? Yes, you should report it.

Comments: This is an example of verbal abuse and spitting at someone is physical assault. The reference to the victim's ethnic origin makes it racist, which means it is a hate crime. The offence was committed regardless of the victim's actual ethnicity.

3) What happened?

"I came home from work today and found that someone has written "tranny" in spray paint on my fence."

Is it a hate crime? Yes, you should report it.

Comments: This type of graffiti is criminal damage, and the use of transphobic words means that it is motivated by prejudice which means it is a hate crime.

4) What happened?

"I was walking my children home from school. As a car drove past, the driver wound the window down and shouted something about our faith and us being terrorists. They said they were going to "get us". My children were frightened and said that they get similar abuse at school"

Is it a hate crime? Yes, you should report it. You should report it to the police and to the school.

Comments: This is verbal abuse and threats based on someone's actual or perceived faith/religion. It should be reported.

5) What happened?

"I have a condition which makes it difficult for me to walk. I was walking back from the local shops when a group of young people started laughing and mimicking my walk. I heard them say some really unpleasant things about me."

Is it a hate crime? Yes, you should report it. You should report it to the police and to the school.

Comments: Hate incidents can be based on any disability, not just physical. A victim could also be targeted because they have a hearing or speech difficulties, or if they are blind. A victim could also be targeted because of their mental health issues or learning disabilities.

6) What happened?

"I think that some of the other pupils in my school are spreading rumours that I am gay. They don't say anything to my face, but they tell ‘gay' jokes and I hear them whispering about me. I saw a text message on a friend's phone about not talking to gay people."

Is it a hate crime? Although this is not a crime because no criminal offence has been committed; it is a hate incident and will be treated seriously. It should be reported.

Comments: This type of behaviour should not be tolerated as it shows prejudice. Some people think these types of incidents are not serious, but they can have a big impact on the victim and can also escalate to more serious types of hate crimes.

Remember

You do not have to be the victim to report incidents, if you see things like this happening you should take responsibility and report it to stop these things happening in our communities.