FBI Stats Show Rise in Hate Crimes Last Year

FBI data released Monday reveals that hate crimes against nearly every demographic are on the rise.

There were 6,121 documented hate crimes in the U.S. last year, compared to 5,850 in 2015. More than half were race-related. The majority of racial hate crimes, about 50 percent, were "anti-Black or African American," while about one-in-five were "anti-White," and one-tenth were "anti-Hispanic or Latino."

"It's deeply disturbing to see hate crimes increase for the second year in a row," Anti-Defamation League CEO Jonathan A. Greenblatt said in a statement, according to The Washington Post. "Hate crimes demand priority attention because of their special impact. They not only hurt one victim, but they also intimidate and isolate a victim's whole community and weaken the bonds of our society."

The data showed:

• Religious bias motivated 1,538 hate crimes last year — over half against Jews, and about one-quarter against Muslims.
• 1,218 hate crimes were based on bias against certain sexual orientations.
• About 62 percent were against gay men, while roughly 20 percent "were prompted by an anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (mixed group) bias."

Sikh Coalition national advocacy manager Sim Singh told NPR that the seven anti-Sikh hate crimes recorded by the FBI last year "represents the tip of the iceberg."

"If law-enforcement agencies fail to document the true extent of hate crimes against our communities," he added, "our nation will have a hard time mobilizing the political will and resources necessary to prevent and combat the problem."

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