Hate Crime

The police and the Crown Prosecution Service define a hate crime as “any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice, based on a person's disability or perceived disability; race or perceived race; or religion or perceived religion; or sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation or transgender identity or perceived transgender identity."

The law recognises five types of hate crime on the basis of:

• Race
• Religion
• Disability
• Sexual orientation
• Transgender identity

Any crime can be prosecuted as a hate crime if the offender has either:

• demonstrated hostility based on race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity

Or

• been motivated by hostility based on race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or transgender identity

You can report it to the police if you’ve:

• experienced a hate crime or incident
• seen a hate crime or incident happen to someone else

It’s worth reporting it to the police even if you don’t think it’s very serious. Sometimes small hate incidents can lead to more serious ones.

If you experience more than one hate incident by the same person or group of people, it’s worth reporting every incident to the police.

If you witness a hate crime, it can be hard to know what to do, or whether help is needed. There are indirect and direct ways you can intervene to assist victims of hate crime, without stepping out of your comfort zone.

We recommend you use the 5Ds when witnessing hate crime.

The 5Ds are different methods that you can use to support someone who’s being harassed, emphasise that harassment is not okay, and demonstrate to people in your life that they have the power to make their community safer. They are:

• Distract
• Delegate
• Document
• Delay
• Direct

Anyone can use the 5Ds and they are designed to be safe and not to escalate situations. Four of them are indirect methods of intervention.

Right to Be provide a breakdown of the 5Ds and useful practical ways they can be implemented:

Distraction is a subtle and creative way to intervene. Its aim is simply to derail the incident of harassment by interrupting it. The keys to good Distraction are:

1. Ignore the person who is harassing, and engage directly with the person who is being harassed.
2. Don’t talk about or refer to the harassment that’s happening. Instead, talk about something completely unrelated.

Delegation is asking a third party for help with intervening in harassment. The keys to Delegation are:

1. Look for a Delegate who is ready and willing to help. Often, a great choice is the person right next to you.
2. When you Delegate someone to help you, try to tell them as clearly as possible what you’re witnessing and how you’d like them to help.

Documentation involves either recording or taking notes on an instance of harassment. It can be really helpful to record an incident of harassment, but there are some keys for safely and responsibly documenting harassment:

1. Assess the situation. Is anyone helping the person being harassed? If not, use another of the 5Ds. Recording someone’s experience of harm without ensuring they’re already receiving help can just create further trauma for them. If someone else is already helping out: assess your own safety, and if you are safe, begin documenting.
2. ALWAYS ask the person who was harassed what they want to do with your recording and/or notes. NEVER post it online or use it without their permission.

Delay involves checking in on someone who’s been harassed after the incident. Even if we can’t act in the moment, we can still make a difference to them. We don’t have to just ignore what happened and move on. We can help reduce that person’s trauma by speaking to them after an instance of harassment.

Direct involves responding directly to harassment by naming the inappropriate behaviour and confronting the person doing harm.

Use this one with caution, because Direct intervention can be risky – the person harassing may redirect their abuse towards the intervening bystander, or may escalate the situation in another way. The first key to Direct intervention is to assess the situation before you decide to respond, by asking yourself the following questions:

1. Are you physically safe?
2. Is the person being harassed physically safe?
3. Does it seem unlikely that the situation will escalate?
4. Can you tell if the person being harassed wants someone to speak up?

If you can answer yes to all of these questions, you might choose a direct response.

The second key to Direct intervention is to keep it short and succinct. As tempting as it may be, avoid engaging in dialogue, debate, or an argument – since this is how situations can escalate. If the person harassing responds to your Direct intervention, focus your attention on assisting the person who was harmed, instead of engaging with the person doing the harm.

Call 999 if:

• it feels like the situation could get heated or violent very soon
• someone is in immediate danger
• you need support right away

Anyone can report hate crime.

You can report an incident anonymously. However, we do encourage victims to provide personal details that can help with the investigation.

Report online

True Vision is a national police scheme to help victims report hate crime online.

Report hate material you've seen online - if you've seen something on a website or social media that promotes hatred or violence against a particular group, use the City of London Police online form to report it.

The City Corporation's Community Safety Team work closely with the City of London Police and other organisations to prevent and tackle all forms of hate crime, and ensure that victims receive the right support and feel safe.

We encourage anyone who sees or experiences hate crime, to report it straight away. When you report hate crime, you become part of the movement to stop it. Despite how small you think the incident may be, it is important to the whole community that it is acknowledged and reported. By reporting it, it helps to build a picture of what is going on in the local area, showing patterns of behaviour and leaving the local agencies better placed to educate, inform and protect everyone in the area.

National Hate Crime Awareness Week is a week of action that takes place between the second to third Saturday in October each year. The annual campaign encourages the authorities, key partners, and communities affected by hate crime to work together to tackle local hate crime across the UK. During this week each year, the City Corporation and the City Police work together to deliver a range of engagement events within the community, to raise awareness of hate crime and the support available to victims. 

In the City of London, Victim Support are here to help visitors, residents and/or people who work in the City of London and have been affected by Hate Crime. They support not only those who experience it directly, but also their friends, family and any other people involved.

It doesn’t matter when the crime took place, or whether you’ve reported it to the police. You can get their help at any time, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.

They’re independent from the police, and their support is free and confidential.

Victim Support can help you feel safer and more secure.

Feeling unsafe after crime is normal. Victim Support can help you to complete a safety plan, and give you advice and information to help you make informed choices and help you feel more secure. They’ll also work with other organisations for you if they think your immediate safety needs to be improved.

Experiencing crime can be overwhelming. You might not know where to turn to. They’ll make sure you’re aware of the rights and services you’re entitled to. They’ll help you find your voice.

You may also find yourself overwhelmed with tasks related to your experience. We can help with:

• Advocacy with other services
• Practical information and emotional support

Victim Support can also help you to better understand your rights and entitlements within the criminal justice system.

Victim Support will give you the information you need to understand your options and next steps.

Victim Support staff are trained to listen, offer feedback and provide information. They can help make sense of what you’ve been through and explore your options to help you regain feelings of control. They provide a safe, neutral place for you to voice your fears, worries and emotions. This helps a lot of people to cope and move forward after a crime.

This can feel similar to the safe and confidential space counselling offers but counselling is not what they provide.

You may find that Victim Support’s help is enough. However additional support might be needed. Victim Support will work with you to identity what that support looks like and make the referral onward referrals or help you access the service yourself.

If you need specialist help that Victim Support don’t think they can provide, they can contact other agencies for you. Victim Support work closely with a wide range of charities and other organisations that have the expertise to help you with many of the problems caused by crime.

How to contact Victim Support

You can always get immediate support by calling the Supportline for free on 08 08 16 89 111. Victim Support also welcome calls via Relay UK on 18001 08 08 16 89 111.

There are a variety of charities, groups and organisations that can offer victims of hate crime support, advice and ways to report any incidents without having to involve the police.

• True Vision - A scheme owned by the National Police Chiefs' Council providing hate crime advice and online reporting.
• Crimestoppers - A national charity with a free helpline for reporting crime anonymously.
• Community Security Trust (CST) - A charity protecting British Jews from antisemitism and related threats.
• Tell MAMA - A national project supporting victims of anti-Muslim hate and monitoring anti-Muslim incidents.
• The Monitoring Group - A leading anti-racist charity that promotes civil rights and provides support through a helpine and casework.
• Galop - A national charity providing advice and support to members of the LGBT+ community.
• Intercom Trust - Providing support for the LGBT+ community.
• Stonewall - Providing support to all LGBTQ+ people.
• Leonard Cheshire - Supporting disabled people and ensuring their basic rights.
• Mencap - Providing support for those with a learning disability.
• MIND - Support and advice for anyone experiencing a mental health issue.