The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights

Confronting the New Faces of Hate: Hate Crimes in America 2009

Leadership Conference on Civil Rights Education Fund - June 2009

For many, the election of President Barack Obama appeared to close the book on a long history of inequality in America. But the spate of racially-motivated hate crimes and violence against minorities and immigrants that occurred before and after Election Day makes clear that a final victory over prejudice and racial hostility remains elusive.

It is time for our nation to redouble its efforts to combat the commission of hate crimes in America.

This report is an update of our 2004 report, Cause for Concern. Sadly, five years later, the problem of hate crimes continues to be a significant national concern that demands priority attention. The purpose of this report is to highlight the need for a coordinated response by every sector of society to eradicate this problem.

View the report by section below, or download a printable version of the full report (pdf).

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

Hate Crimes in America: The Nature and Magnitude of the Problem

• Hate in America: A 2009 Environmental Scan
• The FBI Hate Crime Statistics Act Data Undercounts the Number of Hate Crimes
• The Legal Landscape: The Scope of Hate Crime Laws in America

The State of Hate: Escalating Hate Violence Against Immigrants

• The Role of Extremist Anti-Immigration Groups
• The Infiltration of Mainstream Media

The State of Hate: White Supremacist Groups Growing

The State of Hate: Exploiting the Internet to Promote Hatred

Hate Knows No Borders

The Human Face of Hate Crimes

• Hate Crimes Against African Americans
• Hate Crimes Against Hispanics
• Hate Crimes Against Jews
• Hate Crimes Against Asian Pacific Americans
• Hate Crimes Against Arab Americans, Muslims, and Sikhs
• Hate Crimes Against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Individuals
• Hate Crimes Against Individuals With Disabilities
• Hate Crimes Against Women
• Hate Crimes Against Juveniles

Pending Federal Legislation

Recommendations

• Set the tone for a civil national discourse on Comprehensive Immigration Reform
• Ensure a strong law enforcement response to confront violent bigotry
• Complement tough laws and vigorous enforcement with education and training initiatives designed to reduce prejudice

Selected Resources on Hate Crime Response and Counteraction

Selected Resources on Hate Groups and Extremism

Acknowledgements

Appendices

Appendix A | Anti-Defamation League State Hate Crime Statutory Provisions

Appendix B | Comparison of FBI Hate Crimes Statistics (2007-1997)

Appendix C | Offenders' Reported Motivations In Percentage of Incidents (2007-1997)

Appendix D | HCSA State by State Incident Report Chart (2007-1991)

Appendix E | HCSA State by State Chart HCSA Participating Agencies (2007-1991)

Appendix F | HCSA Big 50 Cities Reporting Chart (2007-1992)