Photo Courtesy of Ed Reed and Paige Polk/Mayoral Photography Office
“We will never stand idly by while our fellow New Yorkers are targeted because of their race, religion, sexual orientation or any other quality that makes them who they are,” Mayor de Blasio said.
By Michael V. Cusenza
The city is experiencing an alarming uptick in hate crimes, according to the latest available Police Department statistics.
The NYPD has recorded 184 total hate crimes year to date, compared to 112 this time last year—an increase of 73 reported incidents, or 64 percent. Investigators have made 75 hate crime-related arrests so far this year, compared to 63 this time in 2018, a 19-percent jump.
“There is no place for hate in New York City and the detectives of the Hate Crime Task Force are working diligently to eliminate these crimes and to bring perpetrators of hate to justice,” the department said last week.
Mayor Bill de Blasio recently announced that the Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes will open this summer and be embedded in the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice—five months ahead of the effective date established by the City Council law that originally created the office. According to the administration, the new office will coordinate responses to hate crimes across City agencies, including the NYPD, City Commission on Human Rights, Department of Education, Department of Probation, Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs and district attorney’s offices.
“The Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes will work to root out hate and make our streets safer, which is why we’re moving up the timeline and opening the office months ahead of schedule,” de Blasio said. “We will never stand idly by while our fellow New Yorkers are targeted because of their race, religion, sexual orientation or any other quality that makes them who they are.”
According to the City, the OPHC will be strategic in using non-law enforcement deterrence, including investing in public education campaigns, outreach and community safety models and preventative best practices. It will also develop responses for when hate crimes occur, including developing diversion programs and other strategies so that the NYPD, DA’s offices, defenders and judges have options beyond arrest and prosecution to deal with hate crime perpetrators.
The new OPHC will also support NYPD training and other responses that address the concerns of LGBTQ, immigrant and other groups to help improve the reporting of hate crimes; develop support programs for victims and reconciliation programs; enhance data collection and sharing with the NYPD, DA’s offices’ hate crimes units, and other partners; and strengthen relationships among victims and law enforcement to enhance criminal justice outcomes and processes for victims.
“The New York City Commission on Human Rights is proud to enforce one of the strongest human rights laws in the nation which prohibits discrimination and harassment in nearly all areas of city living,” said Carmelyn Malalis, commissioner and Chair of the NYC Commission on Human Rights. “The Commission’s bias response team is on the ground across the city working to combat discrimination, respond to bias incidents, and provide support, resources, and education to impacted communities. The creation of the Office for the Prevention of Hate Crimes will allow the Commission to coordinate closely with our agency partners, share information efficiently, and confront bias incidents, discrimination, and hate crimes as one city united.”
