Back to SearchOntario’s police leaders have developed a new resource document on hate and bias crime to assist police services in effectively dealing with these types of crime and responding to the needs of all our communities for safety and well-being.
The Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police’s (OACP) Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee has produced a Hate/Bias Crime: A Review of Policies, Practices, and Challenges document as a resource for police services across Ontario. The document, which builds on original resource by Dr. Timothy Bryan of Dalhousie University, aims to assist police services by providing information and practical resources to address challenges related to the investigation and frontline policing of hate/bias crimes and to provide strategies for more effective interventions to prevent their occurrence.
Hate/bias crime is defined in the Criminal Code of Canada in sections 318, 319, 430(4.1) and the purposes and principles of sentencing (718.2(a)(i)). These criminal acts represent a clear danger to the safety and well-being of individuals as members of diverse and distinct communities in Ontario.
“Hate/bias crime” is a broad legal term that encompasses a diversity of motives, perpetrators, victims, behaviours, and harms. Research has identified individuals and groups that are at particular risk of hate/bias crime victimization, including Indigenous peoples and those targeted because of race, religion, ethnicity, national orientation, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity/expression, disability, or an intersection of more than one of these identities.
The OACP believes that hate/bias crimes are high profile crimes that must be handled by police with commitment and sensitivity. Such crimes/incidents are traumatizing to individuals and communities. As police monitor the number of hate/bias crimes in Canada and internationally, it is vital that police organizations be equipped with the requisite skills and knowledge to effectively respond to bias-motivated occurrences.
In 2018, police reported 1,798 criminal incidents in Canada that were motivated by hate. Hate crimes accounted for less than 0.1% of the over 2.0 million police-reported crimes in 2018 (excluding traffic offences). The number of police-reported hate crimes decreased by 13%, or 275 fewer incidents, compared to the previous year. With the exception of 2017, the number of hate crimes in 2018 was higher than any other year in the past 10 years.*
Resources
Click on the cover image to access this new resource today!
Click on the image to learn more about police reported hate crime in Canada (2018)
Quotes
“Hate and discrimination undermine everyone’s safety. On behalf of the Government of Ontario, I thank the Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police for this ground-breaking initiative to make our province safer for everyone. I am confident that Hate/Bias Crime: A Review of Policies, Practices, and Challenges will be an important tool to help police services combat hate/bias crimes in our communities.”
The Honourable Sylvia Jones, Solicitor General for the Province of Ontario
“Wherever you live or work in Ontario, you deserve to be treated with respect and afforded the inherent dignity that we as human beings have. Hate or bias have absolutely no place in our society. As police professionals, we must never be satisfied with our service to our communities. Hate/Bias Crime: A Review of Policies, Practices, and Challenges must be the starting point for us to do always do better in combatting hate wherever it exists.”
Chief Antje McNeely, Kingston Police, President, Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police
“In order to better serve communities and our own police members, we first need to understand the barriers associated with reporting hate/bias-related crimes. It is not only examining hate/bias-related crime data, but also gaining insight from those with lived-experience in order to address any gaps in reporting and investigating these crimes. We remain committed to transparency and ensuring that diverse community members are treated with dignity and respect not only in the community, but when reporting hate/bias-related crimes to police. This document provides a comprehensive review of the policies, practices, and challenges associated to investigating hate/bias-related crimes with our recommendations to move forward focusing on education, awareness, prevention and intervention.”
Deputy Chief Sheilah Weber, Greater Sudbury Police Service, Co-Chair, OACP Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee
The Hate/Bias Crime document is a significant resource. There is no place for hate/bias-related crimes in our communities or our workplaces, so we are proud of the significant work and research that went into building this important guide for our policing partners and our communities. We will continue to work to prevent and/or address hate/bias-motivated crimes with a strong and unified approach. Equity and inclusion for everyone in Ontario and Canada is paramount.”
Amanda Weaver, Ontario Provincial Police, Co-Chair, OACP Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee
“Hate crimes pose a significant threat to public safety and community cohesion. A coordinated law enforcement response is vital to effectively respond to hate crime. Research and information that can assist in law enforcement in fulfilling it’s essential role is crucial."
Dr. Timothy Bryan, Dalhousie University
“There needs to be a collective decision to address the real and traumatic impact of hate in Canada. The Association of Black Law Enforcers ( A.B.L.E.) strongly supports efforts by police and justice organizations to root out hate and bias wherever it may exist in our society. Hate and bias crimes, in particular, pose a clear danger to everyone. A.B.L.E. stands united with the OACP in rooting out racism and other forms of hate that threaten the safety and well-being of everyone.”
Jacqueline Edwards, President, Association of Black Law Enforcers
“Serving with Pride welcomes this review to assist front-line police officers in identifying crimes motivated by hate/bias. Police services must respond effectively to hate-motivated crime and incidents, support victims, offer reassurance to affected communities, and deploy proactive prevention/intervention-based programs and initiatives if they are to fulfil their responsibilities of public trust and safety. Educated, sensitive, compassionate, and professional response to hate/bias crime and incidents by each and every police officer and all personnel is not only desirable, it’s required.”
Jean Turner, Co-chair, Serving with Pride
“As an organization, we believe the analysis and recommendations found in this report are an opportunity to inform and enhance our prevention and investigative response to hate crimes and hate incidents. We live in an increasingly polarized society, where reasonableness is lost in the muddy waters of hateful and violent ideologies, often propagated unchallenged in internet portals and social media platforms. The increasing diversification of Canadian society is a fact. We encourage law enforcement agencies to adopt a unified framework to prevent, respond and investigate hate/bias motivated crimes.”
Provincial Constable Max Gomez, President, Canadian Association of Latino Peace Officers
“Education is the first step towards recognizing and combating hate/bias crimes in our communities. In order to properly identify these particular types of crimes, the police and our communities must first understand it. To do this, it must be clearly and consistently defined, documented, and shared across all Ontario police services. This first of its kind document, developed and published by the OACP, is an excellent framework for Ontario police services to begin the conversations and take consistent and collective action.”
Tammy Fryer & Inspector Lisa Darling, Co-Chairs, Advancing We in Policing
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