Hate Crimes 1

Hate Crimes by Bias

Hate Crimes Based off Bias and Minority Group Status

Exercise #2 Problem Definition Paper: Secondary Data Tables

Courtnay E. Williams

SOWK 300

Ms. McArthur

September 20, 2010

Abstract:

The purpose of this paper is to examine hate crimes and their general affect on the population.

An examination of what groups affected will be the first goal. Second we will examine the

problem and its size in terms of magnitude and scope. Lastly we will discuss hope for possible

changes and the groups affected by hate crimes.

Problem Identification:

Hate crimes have been a large part of American history for quite some time but the

actual term “hate crime” didn’t come about until the 1980’s. As a result of the wave of bias

based crimes taking over the nation and statistics from the Department of Justice on the subject

matter, the term was formed. The law and legal definition of a hate crime is usually defined by

state law as a crime that involves threats, harassment, or physical harm and is motivated by

prejudice against someone's race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, sexual orientation or

physical or mental disability. Hate crimes not only a part of our past but also a facet of our

future. So the problem then is the fact the hate crimes are not decreasing despite time and

legislation.

My primary data source that I selected from [Link], shows hate crimes by

incident, offense, victim and known offender. The term victim is not limited to a person, but

could also include a place, group, organization, or an entire society. Under Bias motivation

categories are listed and include race, ethnicity/national origin, religion, sexual orientation,

disability, and also multiple biases. Multiple biases include cases where the victim fits more than

one category.

Problem Description:

Hate crimes are violent acts that are based on some type of discrimination. Although the

issue may seem simply black and white it is far from that. This issue is more wide-spread and

ranges through several categories in and outside of simply race. There are countless examples of
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hate crimes throughout History. The prosecution of the Jews, “Gay bashing” and most any acts

by the Skin Heads are just a few that some to mind.

In reference to the survival and propagation of African Americans, this race is also a

target, and has been throughout history. After the establishment of the Ku Klux Klan in 1867, the

number of lynching significantly amplified in the African American population. This continued

through the early 20th century. Even after this were more hate crimes on the African American

race as a result of ignorance and unwillingness to accept change.

The facts are clear. Hate crimes are prevalent in our society and have been for years.

Change is constant, but what can be done to evoke that change is then the question. I believe that

the key to solving this problem is understanding. If people would take the time to get to know

one another for who they are not simply based on the color of their skin, their physical

appearance, their sexual orientation, handicaps, or any other shallow characteristics we may be

able to come to an understanding.

Acceptance is also key in solving this problem. We must accept people for who they are

and not what they are not able to become. The things discriminated against in many hate crimes

are not changeable features. Why hold something against a person or group that they cannot

change. For those features that are chosen such as religion, we must think about the ideals that

our nation was formed on. Our forefathers came to North America to escape prosecution,

especially religiously. We should condemn those who stand on the very morals our country was

founded on.
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Findings:

The main chart I am using is table 312 from [Link]. This table is broad and

informative showing FBI collected statistics on multiple biases. Included on the table are not

only race, but also religion, disability, and sexual orientation, and ethnicity/national origin. There

is also a time period range included on the chart. The time periods used are 2000, 2005, 2006,

and 2007.

My secondary chart is Hate Crime Reported by State: 2007. This chart gives number of

participating agencies, population covered, agencies submitting incidents, and the number of

incidents reported. All of this information is shown as a whole and also state specifically.

Third I have a chart showing hate crime offender’s race. This chart encompasses all races

and ranges from white all the way to unknown. It also shows the types of crimes and how many

people in each race group are listed under participation.

My last chart shows crimes against person and property in hate crimes. Under this

subheading are several smaller individual crimes. Also listed is a list of the states in the United

States. The table shows number of cases for each specific year.

Magnitude:

How large or severe is the problem?

As shown in the tables the problem of hate related crimes given biases is wide spread

and ranges over all the states in the United States. The severity differs by states specifically.
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However there seems to be no specific differentiation from states geographical location as I had

previously suspected.

How many people does it affect?

Hate crimes affect many and we can assume that there are more incidents that have not

been filed or have been categorized under the wrong thing. In 2007of the 7,624,000 cases

submitted the top three states to submit the largest amount of cases was California with

1,400,000, New Jersey with 748,000, and Michigan with 627,000 cases filed.

What are the costs of the problem expressed in terms of money, morbidity, or mortality?

The cost of this problem could probably be best represented in terms of morbidity.

Crimes committed against persons may vary but the majority of hate crimes reported are

incidents of simple assault.

Scope:

How widespread is the problem?

Given information regarding those states who participated in surveys the problem of hate crimes

is everywhere. As always you will have higher amounts of crime in some areas as you will in

others.

What percentages of selected populations are affected?

According to chart 312 of the 7624 cases reported 50.76% of the selected population where

affected racially. 13.21% were affected based off ethnicity/nationality.18.36% were affected
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based off religion. 16.59% were affected based off sexual orientation. Lastly about 1.04% was

affected based off disability.

Change:

How has the problem varied or changed over time?

Given my findings change was not a consistent over the time periods surveys. Using chart 312,

four years were compared: 2000, 2005, 2006, and 2007. In 2000 there 8,213 cases reported, in

2005 there were 7,163 reported, in 2006 there were 7,722 cases reported, and lastly in 2007 there

were 7,624 cases reported.

Although we do see a decrease from 2000 to 2005 after that the numbers rise and fall. This gives

us some hope that change is on the horizon and little by little is coming about. In order to see

really change however there must be a change in mentality. That goal cannot be simple achieved

over night.

Disparities:

Are there differences in the problem in terms of race, sex, age, SES, sexual orientation, or

disability?

As previously stated in percentages, there are differences in the problem based off race, sex,

sexual orientation and disability. Age and SES are not referred to in our research so we will not

make assumptions about them. Race is the leading bias that is listed, meaning that most hate

crimes are of racial hatred. Racially based hate crimes account for more than half of hate crimes.
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The rest of the categories lag behind with smaller percentage in the teens. Religion is next, then

sexual orientation, third ethnicity/nationality, and lastly disability.

Data Tables

Table 1
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Table 2
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Table 3
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Table 4
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References

Federal Bureau of Investigation; U.S. Department of Justice. November 2009. “ Known

Federal Bureau of Investigation; U.S. Department of Justice. November 2009. “Offense Type by
Participating State, 2008.” Retrieved September 20, 2010.
[Link]

U.S. Census Bureau. 2007. “Table 312 Hate Crimes—Number of Incidents, Offenses, Victims,
and Known Offenders by Bias Motivation: 2000 to 2007.” Retrieved September 19,
2010.
[Link]

U.S. Census Bureau. 2007. “Table 313. Hate Crimes Reported by State: 2007.” Retrieved
September 19, 2010. [Link]