United States of America

The United States regularly reports hate crime data to ODIHR. The United States publishes hate crime data annually.

The Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics conducts a regular National Crime Victimization Survey, with data covering the period from 2005 to 2020. In 2020, the Department of Justice issued a comprehensive "Law Enforcement Roundtable Report on Hate Crimes", setting forth key recommendations and action steps to combat hate crime.

Following a 2021 review by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), hate crimes were included in the top-level category of priorities (Band 1 National Threat Priority), resulting in an increase in resources allocated to tackle hate crime. By collaborating with the national Hate Crime Coalition, the FBI consults closely with civil society organizations (CSOs), including to develop and update the FBI Hate Crime Data Collection Guidelines and Training Manual. During an update of the Guidelines, the Department of Justice invited comments from the public and held two virtual consultations with CSOs.

SELECT YEAR

OFFICIAL DATA

Year	Hate crimes recorded by police	Prosecuted	Sentenced
2021	Not available	Not available	Not available
2020	11,129	-	-
2019	8,559	-	-
2018	8,496	27	20
2017	8,437	Not available	Not available
2016	7,321	Not available	Not available
2015	6,885	Not available	Not available
2014	6385	Not available	Not available
2013	6933	22	Not available
2012	6718	Not available	Not available
2011	7254	Not available	Not available
2010	7699	Not available	Not available
2009	7789	Not available	Not available

About 2014 Data

US data reports by incidents, offenses, victims and 'known' offenders. The FBI reports its overall total using 'offenses' label, therefore, these are the figures included. Only offenses with one recorded bias are shown in the breakdown below. Prosecution data refers to prosecutions carried out under federal law by the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division and U.S. Attorneys Offices throughout the country. The vast majority of hate crimes in the United States are prosecuted at the state and local level, for which no figures are currently compiled.

Download official data

National developments

At the commemoration of the fifth Anniversary of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crime Prevention Act, the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division and the Executive Office for United States Attorneys launched a series of five regional trainings on hate crime prevention and prosecutions across the nation, which are taking place in 2015. Trainings have also been held in Kansas City, Kansas; Biloxi, Mississippi; Portland, Oregon; and Miami, Florida. Each brought together state and local law enforcement, representatives of NGOs, faith leaders and community groups; and service providers. In addition, for the first time, each training included a segment presented by the FBI's Hate Crimes Statistics Unit on the importance of data collection and the new FBI training manual.

KEY OBSERVATION

ODIHR observes that the United States has not reported information on sentenced hate crime cases to ODIHR.

Incidents reported by civil society, international organizations and the Holy See

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Reports

Anti-Muslim hate crime

The Ephesus Initiative reported one incident of graffiti on an Islamic centre, and two incidents of damage to property, including an incident in which a mosque's windows were broken by thrown stones.

Hate crime against Christians and members of other religions

The Ephesus Initiative reported an arson attack on a church, thirty incidents of damage to property, including 21 incidents of damage to houses of worship committed by the same perpetrator, and one incident of theft. The Initiative also reported 19 incidents of vandalism and three cases of the desecration of places of worship, including one in which a nativity figure was replaced with a pig's head.

Anti-Semitic hate crime

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and Kantor reported 36 incidents of physical assault, at least two of which involved the use of firearms, and 363 incidents of anti-Semitic graffiti, vandalism or damage to property.

INTERNATIONAL REPORTS

Racist and xenophobic hate crime

The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) recommended that authorities improve their data-collection system for statistics on complaints of hate crimes and ensure that all law-enforcement officials and all new recruits are provided with initial and ongoing in-service training on the investigation and reporting of complaints of hate crimes.