Hate hurts. Report it and put a stop to it.
Date published: 17 October 2023 13:43Hate can be any incident or crime, motivated by prejudice or hostility (or perceived to be so) against a person’s race, religion, sexual orientation, transgender identity or disability. It includes:
- A criminal offence where the law is broken is a hate crime
- An incident that is not a criminal offence is a hate incident
'Hate' can cause a range of emotional responses, including fear, anger and shock. People experience mental and physical well-being issues such as problems sleeping, depression, anxiety and paranoia. Hate hurts and no-one should have to tolerate it.
What is hate crime?
Hate crime is any criminal offence which is motivated by prejudice or hostility (or perceived to be so) against a person’s:
- Race – nationality, ethnicity, skin colour and heritage
- Religion – faith, belief, non-religious belief
- Disability – physical, hearing and visual impairments, mental ill health and learning disabilities
- Sexual orientation - people who identify as lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or heterosexual
- Gender identity - people who identify as ‘trans’ including transgender or transsexual people
It can include things like:
- Physical assault
- Damage to property
- Offensive graffiti
- Arson
- Inciting hatred online
Here’s Chief Inspector Andy Berriman, the hate crime lead, detailing our commitment to tackling the problem, along with Assistant Chief Constable Dan Thorpe.
Our Strategy
You can find out more about our commitment to tackling hate crime in our strategy here.
CPS Yorkshire and Humberside Hate Crime sentence uplift examples
Under hate crime legislation the courts must pass increased sentences where prosecutors evidence that offences have been motivated by hostility towards a person’s race, religion, disability, transgender identity or sexuality. See examples from Yorkshire and the Humberside here.
What is a hate incident?
A hate incident is any incident which the victim, or anyone else, thinks is based on someone’s prejudice towards them because of their race, religion, sexual orientation, disability or because they are transgender.
Evidence of the hate element is not a requirement. You do not need to personally perceive the incident to be hate related. It would be enough if another person, a witness or even a police officer thought that the incident was hate related.
The Police can only prosecute when the law is broken, but we also want to know about non-crime hate incidents. These incidents may not be criminal offences but often can feel like a crime to those affected, and can sometimes escalate to crimes, therefore, we work with partners to try and prevent this from happening. Hate incidents can include things such as offensive or insulting comments, online, in person or in writing.
Click here for more information on how CPS prosecutes hate crimes.
We are committed to tackling hate, no matter what form it comes in. We will deal with your report professionally and with consideration to your needs and wishes. No-one should have to live with fear, anxiety and consequences of hate.
Put a stop to it
Even if you are unsure whether what you have experienced or witnessed was a crime, by reporting the incident, it enables us to support the victim, deal with it appropriately, work with our partners to better understand hate crime and ultimately, stop others becoming victims.
Report it
Call 101 or in an emergency call 999.
If you are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired you can textphone 18001 101 or SMS 07786 220 022.
You can also report Hate online, click here for the form.
As well as the police you can also report hate to other agencies if you prefer. Please bear in mind this information will be passed on to enable us to investigate.
Reporting centres in Doncaster
Reporting centres in Rotherham
Reporting centres in Sheffield
Crimestoppers – Report anonymously on 0800 555 111. Anonymous reports will be passed to police; however, an investigation may be limited where reports are anonymous.
NATIONAL THIRD PARTY REPORTING CENTRES
You can also report hate crime via one of the following independent reporting sites without revealing your personal details:
STOP HATE UK is a leading anti-hate and anti-discrimination organisation for corporate, statutory, and community sectors. They operate the UK’s only free dedicated 24-hour anti-hate crime reporting service for all monitored strands of a person’s identity or perceived identity (disability, race, faith, sexual orientation, and transgender identity, as well as age and alternative subculture). Visit www.stophateuk.org
TELL MAMA is a secure and reliable service that allows people from across England to report any form of Anti-Muslim abuse. Call 0800 456 1226 or visit tellmamauk.org
GALOP DV-Aims to relieve the distress and suffering caused to lesbians, gay men, bi-sexual and trans-gender people by Domestic Violence and abuse. Visit Galop.org.uk
THE MUSLIM COUNCIL OF BRITAIN is a national representative Muslim umbrella body with more than 500 affiliated national,regional and local organisations, mosques, charities and schools. Call 0845 2626786 or visit mcb.org.uk
STONEWALL- works with a whole range of agencies to address the needs of lesbians, gay men and bi-sexuals in the wider community. Call 09000 502 020 or visit stonewall.org.uk
CST- has a dedicated team that deals with anti-semitic incidents and provides victim support, while respecting your confidentiality at all times. Visit cst.org.uk
EQUALITY AND HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION aims to eliminate discrimination, reduce inequality, protect human rights and to build good relations ,ensuring that everyone has a fair chance to participate in society. Call 0845 604 6610 or visit equalityhumanrights.com
REPORT RACISM GRT-is a hate incident reporting site and support service that is run by and for gypsy, traveller and Roma communities in the UK by Herts GATE. Visit reportracismgrt.com
CITIZENS ADVICE SERVICE helps people resolve legal and other problems including harassment by providing free, independent and confidential advice. Visit citizensadvice.org.uk
Resources
Hate Crime leaflets, click to download: