Reporting a hate crime or incident is sometimes hard due to the accessibility of assistance centers.
Hate can lead to an undesirable action or an act that roots from anger toward other people or their communities. If people carry hate against others, they can do things that aren’t humanizing or, worse, crimes against individuals. Moreover, hate crimes and incidents have already been around since World War I, when people violated the civil rights of other individuals.
Hate crimes come from a bias wherein an individual hates a certain community, religion, race, ethnicity, and the like. Up to this day, hate crimes are still being perpetrated by individuals who look to themselves as superior among other people.
Various races have experienced hate crimes and incidents whenever they’re visiting or living in a new country. Most of the victims may be immigrants, religious people, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and others. Here are some examples of hate crimes and incidents:
- Physical attack or assault
- Verbal abuse or name-calling
- Threatening or inciting violence
- Harassment on social media
- Damaging of property
A community shouldn’t let hate crimes and incidents slide as it’ll only promote more violence and prejudice against different sectors. Hence, this article can help you on how to report hate crimes and incidents if you’ve experienced one.
List the Important Details Regarding the Incident
You should ensure that you’ll list all the important details about the case that you’ve experienced. You may consider listing the offender’s details, like physical appearance, gender, clothes they’re wearing, and other attributes that can help you determine that particular person. You can also include the activities they’ve done to you, especially if they involve verbal abuse or physical attack.
File a Report or Seek Legal Assistance
After listing the details of the hate crime or incident, you can file a case with the police or seek assistance from legal services. If you’re an immigrant or a person of color (POC) living in America for years, you can ask for legal assistance from organizations like Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Los Angeles. Additionally, you can also talk to a police officer and ensure that they file a case about your experience.
Seeking legal assistance can help you smoothen your case about the hate crime that you’ve endured. Furthermore, those in authority or who know the law can lead you to a proper investigation regarding the incident, and you can file a legal action against the perpetrator.
Bring Your Incident to Legal Courts and Pursue Professional Help
Suppose you’ve been verbally or physically attacked—anything that has given you damage. In that case, you shouldn’t hinder yourself from pursuing professional help because you can get harm from these incidents.
For example, you’re a member of the LGBTQ+ community who has experienced a physical attack. Therefore, you can file a legal case and make your perpetrator pay regarding the discrimination of your sexual orientation. Moreover, you can also seek help from mental health professionals if it has caused your trauma, too. Mental health effects should also be taken seriously after an assault.
Access Online Sites if You’re Far from Assistance Centers
Reporting a hate crime or incident is sometimes hard due to the accessibility of assistance centers. For example, you’ve been assaulted far from the city, which may take time to be assisted by legal professionals or police personnel. Furthermore, you can use these hate crime assistance websites at your convenience. Reporting through online websites can also protect you from harm after the incident.
Help Other Victims of Hate Crimes and Incidents
Suppose you see an individual experiencing assault or harassment from their perpetrator. In that case, the best you can do is call out the offender and immediately seek help from other people if there isn’t a police presence in the area.
The first step is to check on the victim if they’re okay, then you can ask them if they want to get help from authorities. For example, a POC has been physically assaulted in public transport. You can immediately contact a police officer that a hate crime has occurred.
Stop and Condemn Hate Crimes And Incidents
Reporting these hate crimes and incidents is a great step toward a peaceful and inclusive community. No one should experience harassment just because of discrimination. These steps in reporting incidents will guide you through handling hate crimes without being more exposed to later attacks, as well as preventing more hate crimes from occurring.
Furthermore, these hate crimes and incidents shouldn’t just stop at just being reported, but different communities should also condemn these heinous attacks. Hate can be dangerous, especially if it’s ultimately biased, and can translate into violence.
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