HATE INCIDENT & HATE CRIME REPORTING - CA vs. HATE

CALIFORNIA CIVIL RIGHTS DEPARTMENT


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  • Toll-Free
    833-8NOHATE
    833-866-4283

CA vs. Hate is a non-emergency hate incident and hate crime reporting program. Victims and witnesses can report via phone, hotline, or web page.

To report a hate incident or hate crime, anonymously if you wish:
  • call 833-866-4283 (833-8NO-HATE) - you may speak to a live person Mon-Fri from 8am-5pm Pacific Time
  • or report online at https://stophate.calcivilrights.ca.gov/s/. Additional info and links to many resources are also on this page.
Whether or not you report anonymously, your identity will not be disclosed. The only exception to non-disclosure is if a report is made of child abuse, elder abuse, or activities indicating an imminent risk of violence.

The primary goals of this program are to ensure that victims and witnesses have access to needed services and that hate crimes and incidents get reported.

What is the difference between a hate crime and a hate incident?
Sources: https://oag.ca.gov/hatecrimes and https://calcivilrights.ca.gov/ca-vs-hate-faq/

A hate crime is a crime against a person, group, or property motivated by the victim's real or perceived protected social group (also known as a protected class). You may be the victim of a hate crime if you have been targeted because of your actual or perceived: (1) disability, (2) gender, (3) nationality, (4) race or ethnicity, (5) religion, (6) sexual orientation, and (7) association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. Hate crimes are serious crimes that may result in imprisonment or jail time.

A hate incident is an action or behavior motivated by hate but which, for one or more reasons, is not a crime. Examples of hate incidents include:
  • Name-calling
  • Insults
  • Displaying hate material on your own property.
  • Posting hate material that does not result in property damage.
  • Distribution of materials with hate messages in public places.
There are two main kinds of hate incidents – (1) acts of hate that are not crimes but violate civil rights laws, and (2) acts of hate that may not violate the law but still cause significant harm in a community.

The U.S. Constitution allows hate speech as long as it does not interfere with the civil rights of others. While these acts are certainly hurtful, they do not rise to the level of criminal violations and thus may not be prosecuted. However, it is important to note that these incidents have a traumatic impact on the victims as well as on the community at large.

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