Derbyshire takes a stand against hate crime

Recorded crime figures, in 2019/20, show that there were 105,090 offences recorded by the police, where one or more of the central monitored hate crime strands were deemed to be the motivating factor.

Between 09-16 October, is National Hate Crime Awareness Week. This week of action provides the force with the opportunity to raise awareness and engage with the public in tackling and preventing hate crimes, along with highlighting support for those in need. Throughout this week, we'll be posting a series of awareness raising posts on varying hate related topics.

A hate crime is a criminal offence, which is targeted at a person, group or property, because of hostility or prejudice towards their disability, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, sexual orientation or gender identity or any other perceived difference.

It doesn’t always include physical violence. Someone using offensive language towards you or harassing you because of who you are, or who they think you are, is also a crime. The same goes for someone posting abusive or offensive messages about you online.

These incidents can have a lasting and devastating impact on its victims, their families and upon the local community. It causes fear and division and it's crucial that we come together and unite against hate and ensure Derbyshire is an inclusive and welcoming county for all.

Being you is not a crime, targeting you is – hate is not something that you should have to live with or tolerate, so it's important to report these acts to us, so we can investigate them thoroughly and help in putting a stop to these incidents, for both yourself and others being targeted by hate.

💻 📞 How to make a report

Remember, you don’t have to be the victim of hate crime to report it. You can report anything you’ve seen happening to someone else, or report it on their behalf if they don’t want to.

If you wish to report a hate crime to us, please visit our hate crime reporting page on our force website: https://bit.ly/34QcXUx

Please note, in the event of an emergency you should always call 999.

We also understand that you may not be ready to talk to us about what has happened. The charities, groups and organisations on the Stop Hate UK website (https://bit.ly/3alD0pS) or through CORE Derbyshire Victim Services (https://bit.ly/3lmlwzL / 0800 612 6505) can offer support, advice and ways to report the incident without having to talk directly to the police.

#WeStandTogether
#NoPlaceForHate
#SafePlaceForAll
#HateCrimeAwarenessWeek