Hate Crimes

Hate Crimes can threaten community relations and must be reported

A hate incident is a situation where a person is targeted for hostility and hateful behaviour because of who they are or a characteristic they have (normally it is because they are different in some way to the perpetrator). This could be due to someone’s religion, ethnic origin, sexuality, disability etc.

This is totally unacceptable, and this behaviour will not be tolerated, and we want to play our role in tackling this. If you or anyone you know experiences any hate or hostility it is really important that it is reported to the police, so that they can plan how to prevent further incidents.

If you witness an incident, please don’t ignore it. There are things you can do that don’t put you at any risk such as:

SEE – observe what is going on, don’t walk on as you are allowing the behaviour to continue

REPORT – report what you observe to the police when you feel safe to do so

SUPPORT – if you get a chance just touch base with the person affected, even if it’s just asking them if they are OK

Where to report

Victims, witnesses and third parties (if someone tells you about an incident) can all report hate incidents. You can report in several ways including online, calling 101 or by visiting a Police Station for more details go to https://www.leics.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/hco/hate-crime/how-to-report-hate-crime/

If you don’t feel comfortable going directly to the Police then you can email me (neil.obrien.mp@parliament.uk) and we can report it on your behalf, we don’t need to provide your details in any reports we make.

Where to get support

Victim First provides information and support for anyone affected by crime. You can call 0800 953 95 95 whether the crime is recent or in the past, and whether or not you want to report it.

The phone lines are open Monday to Saturday, from 9am to 6pm (to 8pm on Wednesday).

Calls are confidential.

You can also email or visit the Victim First website https://victimfirst.org/