What is Hate Crime?
A Hate crime or incident is any incident, which constitutes a criminal offence and is motivated by prejudice. It can take many forms including physical assault, offensive graffiti, verbal abuse, offensive literature, criminal damage and abusive gestures.
Oxford is one of the safest areas in the country with only a small number of hate crimes committed each year. However, when a hate crime does occur, it can have a major impact on the life of the victim and the wider community.
Hate crime can be motivated due to someone's prejudice against another person's:
- Race, colour, ethnic origin, nationality or national origins
- Religion
- Gender or gender identity
- Sexual orientation
- Disability
- Reporting hate crime
It is really important to report hate crimes - victims have a right to be protected.
Reporting Hate Crime
Anyone who is a victim of, or witness to, a hate crime is advised to contact the police (on 999, in an emergency, or 101, in a non-emergency, 24 hours a day).
Victims can also contact Victims First. The Police and Crime Commissioner’s initiative gives advice on what to do and how to get help if you’ve been a victim of crime, including information on what you should expect from the police and other criminal justice agencies if you report the crime.
The focal point of the Victims First website is a directory which allows victims to find relevant support to help them cope and recover from the impact of the crime. You can use the website to refer yourself directly to the PCC's own support services, using the online form, or find information and contact details for other organisations. This support is available regardless of whether or not the crime has been reported to the police.
Victims First now has a Facebook page to keep people up to date on information, advice and support for victims of crime.
You can still report hate crime by calling Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 or via the Crimestoppers website. You do not have to give your name and what you say is confidential. It is free to call.
Online Hate Crime
If you see content online such as pictures, videos or even music being used to incite hatred you can report this using an online form to the police.
As with other forms of Hate Crime they can be reported to the police on 999 or 101.
There may be instances when hateful content isn’t necessarily illegal, however you can still take action to see if it can be removed.
To remove online hate content you can:
- Contact the website administrator. The majority of websites have a ‘report this page’ option which allows you to make a complaint about the content
- If the content remains online you can report the content to the web hosting company. You will first need to find out who hosts the web page and can do so by using the free Who is hosting this website.
Further information about Hate Crime
