What is a hate crime?
A hate crime is a criminal offence which is motivated by prejudice towards a person’s actual or perceived race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or transgender identity. For example, if someone was physically assaulted for being trans, it would be a hate crime.
A hate crime is:
- Physical violence
- Threats of violence
- Sexual harassment
- Or any other crime against you
that is motivated by your gender reassignment (or any other relevant protected characteristic) or in relation to which the perpetrator demonstrated hostility based on your gender reassignment.
If any of these happen to you in the workplace – or anywhere else – it could be considered a crime. An important thing to know is that it’s up to you to decide whether you think that it was motivated by hate and prejudice on the basis of you being trans/perceived to be trans and if so, state that when you report the incident.
What is a hate incident?
A hate incident is an act of hostility which is motivated by prejudice towards a person’s actual or perceived race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or transgender identity. A hate incident may not in itself constitute a hate crime. However if you experience a number of hate incidents at the hand of one individual then that would constitute harassment, which is a crime.
What should I do if I am a victim of a transphobic hate incident or hate crime?
1. Make sure you are safe.
2. Keep evidence of the incident and make a record of what has happened. If you are being harassed or blackmailed, keep a diary of every incident.
3. Report the incident to the police or to Galop.
What are my rights if I choose to make a report?
If you choose to make a report your rights include:
- to have the report recorded as a hate incident by the police
- to get information about and access victim support services
- to be kept up to date and informed about what is happening
- to make a statement about how the crime affected you
These four rights are consistent across The Code of Practice for Victims of Crime for England and Wales, the Victims’ Code for Scotland, and the Victim Charter in Northern Ireland – you get additional ones depending on which country you’re in. If you ask for something to be treated as a hate crime, this can mean harsher sentencing for the perpetrator.
After you’ve made a report, the Crown Prosecution Service may or may not prosecute – it depends on how much evidence there is. If they decide to take the case to court, you have additional rights in court to protect you. Your rights are enforceable – so you can complain if the police or CPS don’t treat you properly. You can also make an application to be kept anonymous during the court process.
Where can I find more information and support around transphobic hate crime?
Many people don’t report hate incidents and transphobia for lots of reasons – we understand it’s not what everyone wants to do. If you don’t want to make a report to the police, or you’re not sure if you want to make a report and want to talk it through with an expert, you can still get support:
- GALOP is a charity independent of the police and specialises support for victims of LGBT+ hate crime.
- You can also access GALOP support through the Zoteria app if you’d prefer to talk that way. Reporting through the Zoteria app also helps GALOP to track levels of hate crime.
- Victim Support is a charity independent of the police that supports victims of any crime.
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