It's alarming that schools, places meant for learning and growth, are increasingly becoming hubs for hate-driven incidents.
From 2018 to 2022, educational institutions ranked third among locations for hate crimes in the #UnitedStates, with the #FBI recording over 4,300 incidents or 7.7% of all offenses in these settings. The data indicates a rising trend in hate crimes overall, escalating from 8,492 in 2018 to 13,346 in 2022. Hate crimes were most frequently reported in homes or residential areas, followed by incidents on highways, roads, and alleys.
The occurrence of hate crimes in educational settings varied annually, plummeting to the lowest in 2020, with 500 offenses attributed to school closures during the pandemic. Conversely, 2022 saw a peak with 1,336 offenses in educational environments. The analysis disclosed a predominance of anti-Black, anti-LGBTQ, and anti-Jewish offenses, notably targeting LGBTQ community events and gay men.
Educational settings categorized as "college/university," "elementary/secondary," and "unspecified school/college" revealed that the majority, over half of the hate crimes, occurred in elementary or secondary schools, summing up to 2,815 incidents from 2018 to 2022. The prevalent forms of offenses were intimidation, destruction or vandalism, and simple assault.
While the report echoes the broader trends of hate crimes, experts caution about the underreporting of such incidents. The wider context of hate crimes in the U.S. includes several high-profile incidents, though not specifically linked to the FBI's school hate crime report, illustrating the varied and severe nature of these offenses across the country.
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Link: NBCNews
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