Why Are Hate Crime Laws Needed?
Hate crimes target victims simply for who they are. In these crimes, violence is not used as a means for victim compliance. Rather, inflicting maximum violence is the goal. All that matters to the assailant is that the victim appears to be of a particular race, religion, or other group. Because hate crime victims are interchangeable and random, these crimes terrorize the entire victim’s community and often lead to similarly terrorizing retaliatory hate crimes against the perpetrator’s community. So hate crime laws, which increase sentences for criminals who commit them, are a way for society to recognize that these crimes strike special fear within victimized groups, fragment communities, and tear at the very fabric of our democratic way of life.
Who Does Florida’s Hate Crime Laws Exclude?
Although Florida already has a hate crime law, it is not comprehensive. Floridians are not protected by it if they are targeted for a crime because of physical disability, gender, or gender identity. And the law does not cover “association with” hate crimes where, for example, a person is victimized for being at a bar or restaurant with African American or Hispanic friends. It also does not cover “mixed motive” hate crimes. So, for instance, if a perpetrator involved in a fender-bender assaults the other driver while yelling racial epithets and angry remarks about the accident at the victim, a hate crime cannot be charged. The legislation that the Florida Hate Crime Coalition supports – SB 308 and HB 111 – closes these critical gaps in the law.
The Gaps in Florida’s Hate Crime Laws Amplifies the State’s Underreporting Problem
The FBI’s annual hate crimes statistics report revealed that 2020 saw an eight percent increase in reported hate crimes, with 8,263 incidents reported nationally — the highest total since 2002. The increase in reported hate crimes comes despite the fact that the number of law enforcement agencies providing data has dropped from 15,558 in 2019 to 15,136 in 2020. Of the agencies that do participate, the vast majority report no hate crimes — in 2020, over eighty-four percent of participating agencies did not report a single hate crime.
Despite this national increase, the number of reported hate crimes in Florida dropped from 145 in 2017, to 141 in 2018, to 111 in 2019, and 109 in 2020, a trend which experts, including ADL (Anti-Defamation League), attribute to a national underreporting problem that is particularly pronounced in Florida. In contrast, New York and Texas, which have similar-sized populations to Florida, reported far more hate crimes in 2020, 463 and 406 incidents respectively.
Of the 687 law enforcement agencies in Florida, just 452 participate in the FBI’s hate crimes reporting program. Of those 452 participating agencies, just 54 reported hate crimes to the FBI in 2020. Overall – only 11.9% of Florida law enforcement agencies actually reported one or more hate crimes; the national average was 15.7%.
145 Florida cities reported no hate crimes at all. Zero hate crimes were reported in St. Petersburg or Miami, which have populations over 250,000. Five cities with populations over 100,000 reported zero hate crimes – including Miami Gardens, Pompano Beach, Miramar, Tallahassee, and Cape Coral; and seventeen cities with populations of 50,000 – 100,000 reported zero hate crimes. Coral Springs and Lakeland, both with populations between 100,000-250,000 did not report to the FBI.
Florida’s statutory exclusion of hate crimes committed because of physical disability, gender, gender identity, as well as “association with” or “mixed motive” hate crimes, most likely contributes to this underreporting.
FBI 2020 Hate Crime Statistics
Do Hate Crime Laws Punish Thought or Speech?
No – Americans are free to believe and say whatever they want. Hate crime laws only punish criminal acts, such as aggravated assault or vandalism. Just like any criminal case, hate crime laws require the underlying criminal act and bias motive to be proven with evidence beyond a reasonable doubt. In 1994, the Florida Supreme Court upheld Florida’s hate crime law against a First Amendment challenge. The year before, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously upheld a Wisconsin hate crime law against a similar constitutional challenge.
Do Hate Crime Laws Give Special Rights to Special Groups?
No – Hate crime laws are color blind. They cover victims whether they are in the majority or minority. In fact, based on the FBI’s 2020 national hate crime statistics, 19% of race-based hate crimes were against white people, 13% of religious-based hate crimes were against Christians, 47% of gender-based hate crimes were against men, and 1% of sexual-orientation based hate crimes were against heterosexuals.
Under Florida’s Hate Crime Law, Does A Victim Actually Have To Be A Member Of A Targeted Group For A Hate Crime To Be Charged?
No – A hate crime can be charged where person is targeted based on actual or perceived membership in a group. In investigating a potential hate crime, law enforcement does not have to verify that the victim is a member of the perceived targeted group. So, for example, if a perpetrator erroneously perceives a Sikh man who wears a turban to be Muslim and assaults them while yelling anti-Muslim epithets, a hate crime could be charged. Other examples include a person being targeted based on the mistaken belief that the victim is gay, Jewish, or transgender.