Reported U.S. hate crimes up, as are incidents against Jews

WASHINGTON, Jan. 8 (JTA) — A record 8,734 hate crimes were reported to the FBI in 1996, U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno announced this week. Of the 1,400 religion-motivated hate crimes, more than 1,100 — or nearly 80 percent — were anti-Jewish. Overall, hate crimes against Jews accounted for nearly 13 percent of all hate activity. Up from about 8,000 reported incidents in 1995, the overall increase in hate crimes reflects a record number of law enforcement agencies reporting such incidents, and not necessarily an increase in hate activity. More than 11,300 agencies, representing a geographical area that covers 84 percent of the nation’s population, provided information to the FBI on hate crimes in 1996, compared to about 9,600 agencies in 1995. In addition to the 1,400 crimes motivated by religious hatred, Reno said the 1996 statistics reveal more than 5,000 hate crimes based on race and more than 1,000 based on sexual orientation. “This report provides a measure of accountability because it provides a jurisdiction by jurisdiction breakdown,” said Michael Lieberman, Washington counsel for the Anti-Defamation League. He said the statistics show that some places are not doing a good job reporting such crimes. “You have bizarre things that leap off the page, like Miami reporting zero” hate crimes, “New Orleans one, Detroit five.” The report, he added, “underscores the importance of training to improve the ability of law enforcement to identify and respond to these crimes.” The Clinton administration has made the fight against hate-driven violence a top priority. At a White House conference on hate crimes last year, President Clinton announced a series of law-enforcement and prevention efforts to address the problem. He endorsed legislation sponsored by Sens. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), and Rep. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) that would give federal prosecutors new authority to prosecute racial violence and hate crimes against women, the disabled, and gay and lesbian Americans. Reno announced Thursday that a new working group of local hate crime groups from around the country would meet in Washington next month for another conference to map out strategies for fighting hate.