What is a hate crime? According to Dr. Jack McDevitt, a criminologist at Northeastern University in Boston, hate crimes are crimes that are defined as crimes that are violent acts against people, property, or organizations because of the group to which they belong or identify with. Hate crimes have become an increasing problem in the United States ranging from racial hatred to gender discrimination. 

     On average, in the United States, there is one hate crime committed every hour. One of many reasons of hate crimes is religion. In 1997 SS lightning bolts and swastikas were among the anti-Semitic graffiti discovered in Hebrew and Yiddish books in the University of Chicago library, and an explosive device was detonated at the door of a Jewish center in New York City. But personal assaults against Jews are not uncommon. That same year, two men with a BB gun entered a Wisconsin synagogue and started shooting during morning prayers. In 1995 in Cincinnati, a gang member revealed that one of the victims of his group\\'s initiation ceremony was chosen just because he was Jewish. Most recently, because of the September 11 attacks Muslims have been the constant target of hate crimes in America, which women are predominantly the target for these crimes. 

     Another cause of hate crimes in America is race. The biggest and most recent hate crime in the U.S. the El Paso attack comes amid a five-year upward trend in reported hate crimes in the United States, according to the FBI. Killing twenty people and injuring more than two dozen. The people targeted in these hate crimes were Latinos at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas. The spike is marked by particularly shocking killings, including those of nine members of a historically black church in Charleston, South Carolina. 

     Gender discrimination is also a constant problem in America. In 2016, 49 people were killed and 53 people were injured at a Latino gay nightclub, in Orlando, Florida.  In 2017 there was a shooting in Manchester, England during an Ariana Grande concert. Which killed 22 people and injured dozens. This was the deadliest “terrorist incident” that has happened on British soil since the London bombings in 2005. 

     Because there haven’t been enough actions taken after all of these previous events, tragic things keep happening in the U.S. no one can go to school or go out in public without being in fear of being involved in a hate crime. This is why we need to start a change in America. 

Sources

“Hate Crime Statistics.” The United States Department of Justice, 2 Oct. 2019, justice.gov/hatecrimes/hate-crime-statistics.

“Hate Crimes.” FBI, FBI, 3 May 2016, fbi.gov/investigate/civil-rights/hate-crimes.

Chief, Editor in. “26 Startling Hate Crime Statistics.” Vittana.org, vittana.org/26-startling-hate-crime-statistics.

“US Hate Crime Rates and Statistics.” US Hate Crime Rates and Statistics | US Insurance Agents, usinsuranceagents.com/rates-us-hate-crimes.

“2017 Hate Crime Statistics Released.” FBI, FBI, 13 Oct. 2018, fbi.gov/news/stories/2017-hate-crime-statistics-released-111318.

“Learn About Hate Crimes.” The United States Department of Justice, 5 Oct. 2019, justice.gov/hatecrimes/learn-about-hate-crimes-TBD.

“22 Dead, Dozens Injured in Concert Explosion in Manchester, England; Police Investigating It as 'Terrorist Incident'.” KTLA, 23 May 2017, ktla.com/2017/05/22/multiple-fatalities-reported-after-apparent-explosions-at-ariana-grande-concert-in-manchester-england/.