Hate Crimes at record high, new figures reveal

Statistics released by the Home Office last month revealed that hate crime has hit its highest level on record with 105,090 hate crimes recorded in 2019/20, up 8% compared with 97,446 offences in 2018/19.

The figures show that hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation increased by the largest percentage of any group – 19% from 13,314 incidents to 15,835 – while hate crimes against people who identify as transgender increased by 16% to 2,540, disability hate crimes increased by 9% to 8,469, and racially-motivated offences increased by more than 4,000 to 76,070.

Nearly a quarter (23%) of reported hate crime against LGB+ people included stalking and harassment, while this rose to 32% for transgender people.

The report puts the rise in hate crime over the last five years down to “improvements in crime recording by the police”, adding that there had been spikes in reports following the 2016 EU Referendum and the 2017 terror attacks.

The figures do not include the number of reports made to Greater Manchester Police as the force is still unable to supply data to the Home Office due to a computer glitch when installing new software last year.

Jeffrey Ingold, Head of Media at LGBTQ+ equality charity Stonewall, said:

It’s 2020 – LGBTQ+ people should feel safe and no one should face hate because of who they are. Sadly, the reality JEFFREY INGOLD is very different and these worrying statistics should be a wake-up call. While some people may suggest this spike is due to increased confidence in reporting, we fear these figures represent the tip of the iceberg of a rise in hate crimes against LGBTQ+ people. From our research into hate crime, we know that four in five anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes go unreported, with younger people particularly reluctant to go to the police.

There’s a role for all of us in tackling hate crimes and building a society where everyone is safe. LGBTQ+-inclusive education can be transformative in teaching young people to accept each other from an early age. We also need the support of allies to stand up for LGBTQ+ equality in whatever way they can – whether in work, online, out and about, or by supporting LGBTQ+ charities and communities.

To report a hate crime, visit www.report-it.org.uk/your_police_force or call 999 if it is an emergency or 101 if it’s not.

To see the full statistics, visit: https://tinyurl.com/HomeOfficeStats

For more info on Stonewall, visit: www.stonewall.org.uk

Gscene Comment

Please do not dismiss or explain away the rise in recorded homophobia as “more people are now reporting these crimes”. I experienced three serious incidents within the space of just over a year in 2017-2018 and following the public service and legal response to the first, I did not report the other two.

In 2019 there were almost three dozen serious physical assaults on people in Brighton’s gay village late at night within the space of two months. Only one in three of these was reported to the police.

These official statistics are a fraction of the reality for LGBTQ+ people living in the UK post the EU membership referendum.

We have to do more and we have to do it better and it starts in places of education and in the workplace. We need more LGBTQ+ networks in our places of employment and study, and networks that embrace all other diversities within the LGBTQ+ broad community. There can not be a space for suppressed or explicit racism or misogyny within any aspect of the the LGBTQ+ communities, and we cannot allow space for homophobia within other marginalised groups. It is decisive and ultimately destructive. Call it out.

We're better together; it starts with me. - Craig Hanlon-Smith, Gscene columnist