US hate crimes drop in 2021, FBI data finds, but undercount likely

US hate crimes drop in 2021, FBI data finds, but undercount likely

US hate crimes drop in 2021, FBI data finds, but undercount likely

NEW YORK – US hate crime incidents dropped in 2021 from a two-decade excessive in 2020, in keeping with FBI information launched on Monday, however the company acknowledged that the figures exclude totals from greater than one-third of the nation’s regulation enforcement companies.

Overall, greater than 7,200 hate crimes had been reported in 2021, about 1,000 fewer than a 12 months earlier. More than 60% of the reported incidents had been primarily based on race, ancestry or ethnicity, whereas about one in six had been categorized as sexual orientation-bias crimes and one in seven as religion-bias crimes.

Fewer than 12,000 of the nation’s almost 19,000 regulation enforcement companies reported hate crime information to the FBI in 2021, in contrast with greater than 15,000 in 2020, largely because of the implementation of a brand new information reporting system in 2021. The lacking police departments included these in New York and Los Angeles, the 2 greatest US cities.

The new system is meant to offer the FBI with extra granular information, however some states and main departments have but to change from the earlier system, the Justice Department stated.

Several anti-discrimination organizations warned that the information didn’t seize the complete extent of US hate crimes.

“The failure by major states and cities across the country to report hate crime data essentially – and inexcusably – erases the lived experience of marginalized communities across the country,” stated Jonathan Greenblatt, chief govt of the Anti-Defamation League, which is dedicated to combating anti-Semitism, in an announcement.

Outside teams that observe police information have discovered that hate crimes rose in 2021, extending a latest development. The Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University in San Bernardino reported this 12 months {that a} survey of information from 18 states and Washington, D.C., confirmed a 21% improve in hate crimes from 2020 to 2021 to a complete of 8,896, greater than the FBI’s nationwide figures.

In an announcement, Associate US Attorney General Vanita Gupta stated the Justice Department would proceed working with police companies to transition to the brand new information reporting system. — Reuters