Victims

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In the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, the victim of a hate crime may be an individual, a business, an institution, or society as a whole. In 2015, the nation’s law enforcement agencies reported that there were 7,173 victims of hate crimes. Of these victims, 52 were victimized in separate multiple-bias incidents.

The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, 18 U.S.C. §249 required the FBI to collect data concerning hate crimes committed by or directed against juveniles. Beginning in 2013, law enforcement began reporting the number of victims who are 18 years of age or older and the number of victims under the age of 18 in addition to reporting the number of individual victims. Of the 4,198 individuals for which victim age data were reported in 2015, 3,702 hate crime victims were adults, and 496 hate crime victims were juveniles.

In 2013, the national UCR Program began collecting revised race and ethnicity data in accordance with a directive from the U.S. Government’s Office of Management and Budget. The race categories were expanded from four (White, Black, American Indian or Alaska Native, and Asian or Other Pacific Islander) to five (White, Black or African American, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, and Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander). The ethnicity categories changed from “Hispanic” and “Non-Hispanic” to “Hispanic or Latino” and “Not Hispanic or Latino.” (See the Methodology for more information about this program change as well as others.)



By bias motivation (Based on Table 1.)



An analysis of data for victims of single-bias hate crime incidents showed that:

59.2 percent of the victims were targeted because of the offenders’ bias against race/ethnicity/ancestry.

19.7 percent were victimized because of bias against religion.

17.7 percent were targeted because of bias against sexual orientation.

1.7 percent were victims of gender-identity bias.

1.2 percent were targeted because of bias against disability.

0.4 percent (30 individuals) were victims of gender bias.

Further examination of these bias categories showed the following details:



Racial/Ethnicity/Ancestry bias (Based on Table 1.)



Among single-bias hate crime incidents in 2015, there were 4,216 victims of race/ethnicity/ancestry motivated hate crime.

52.2 percent were victims of crimes motivated by their offenders’ anti-Black or African American bias.

18.7 percent were victims of anti-White bias.

9.3 percent were victims of anti-Hispanic or Latino bias.

3.8 percent were victims of bias against a group of individuals in which more than one race was represented (anti-multiple races, group).

3.3 percent were victims of anti-American Indian or Alaska Native bias.

3.2 percent were victims of anti-Asian bias.

1.1 percent were victims of anti-Arab bias.

0.1 percent (6 individuals) were victims of anti-Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander bias.

8.1 percent were victims of anti-Other Race/Ethnicity/Ancestry bias.

Sexual-orientation bias (Based on Table 1.)



Of the 1,263 victims targeted due to sexual-orientation bias:

62.2 percent were victims of crimes motivated by their offenders’ anti-gay (male) bias.

19.6 percent were victims of anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (mixed group) bias.

13.5 percent were victims of anti-lesbian bias.

2.8 percent were victims of anti-bisexual bias.

1.9 percent were victims of anti-heterosexual bias.

Religious bias (Based on Table 1.)



Of the 1,402 victims of anti-religious hate crimes:

52.1 percent were victims of crimes motivated by their offenders’ anti-Jewish bias.

21.9 percent were victims of anti-Islamic (Muslim) bias.

4.3 percent were victims of anti-Catholic bias.

4.1 percent were victims of bias against groups of individuals of varying religions (anti-multiple religions, group).

3.6 percent were victims of anti-Eastern Orthodox (Russian, Greek, Other) bias.

3.4 percent were victims of anti-Protestant bias.

1.3 percent were victims of anti-Other Christian bias.

0.6 percent were victims of anti-Mormon bias.

0.4 percent were victims of anti-Hindu bias.

0.4 percent were victims of anti-Sikh bias.

0.1 percent were victims of anti-Jehovah’s Witness bias.

0.1 percent were victims of anti-Buddhist bias.

0.1 percent were victims of anti-Atheist/Agnostic bias.

7.6 percent were victims of bias against other religions (anti-other religion).

Disability bias (See Table 1.)



Of the 88 victims of hate crimes due to the offenders’ biases against disabilities:

52 were victims of anti-physical disability bias.

36 were targets of anti-mental disability bias.

Gender bias (See Table 1.)



Of the 30 victims of hate crime motivated by offenders’ biases toward gender:

22 were categorized as anti-female.

8 were anti-male.

Gender-identity bias (See Table 1.)



Of the 122 victims of gender-identity bias:

76 were victims of anti-transgender bias.

46 were victims of anti-gender non-conforming bias.

By crime category (Based on Table 2.)



Of the 7,173 victims of hate crime, 62.5 percent were victims of crimes against persons, and 36.6 percent were victims of crimes against property. The remaining 0.9 percent were victims of crimes against society.



By offense type



Crimes against persons (Based on Table 2.)



In 2015, 4,482 victims of hate crimes were victims of crimes against persons. Regarding these victims and the crimes committed against them:

18 persons were murdered, and 13 were raped. (Concerning rape, data for 12 rapes were submitted under the UCR Program’s revised definition; 1 rape was submitted under the legacy definition. See the Methodology for more information about this and other program changes.)

41.3 percent of the victims were intimidated.

37.8 percent were victims of simple assault.

19.7 percent were victims of aggravated assault.

0.4 percent (20) were victims of other types of offenses, which are collected only in the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).

Crimes against property (Based on Table 2.)



In 2015, 2,626 victims of hate crimes were victims of crimes against property. Of these:

72.2 percent were victims of destruction/damage/vandalism.

10.4 percent were victims of larceny-theft.

6.6 percent were victims of burglary.

5.6 percent were victims of robbery.

1.4 percent were victims of arson.

0.9 percent (24) were victims of motor vehicle theft.

2.8 percent were victims of other types of hate crime offenses, which are collected only in NIBRS.

Crimes against society (See Table 2.)



There were 65 victims of hate crimes categorized as crimes against society. Crimes against society (e.g., weapon law violations, drug/narcotic offenses, gambling offenses) represent society’s prohibition against engaging in certain types of activity; they are typically victimless crimes in which property is not the object.