Police in the UK are urging members of the public to report ‘hateful’ people, even if they haven’t committed an actual crime.
In a short video published to social media last Saturday, Devon and Cornwall Police said it’s everyone’s responsibility to report anyone seen to be “hateful” even if their behaviour is not criminal.
The minute-long animation is part of the ‘Zero Tolerance to Hate Crime’ campaign, which was launched with the help of “a representative group of different minority communities which expressed feelings of disharmony and unrest after the Brexit result…”
The video shows several white men harassing and physically assaulting Muslims, blacks, and disabled people.
First, the animation shows a white man verbally abusing a shopkeeper “because he’s black.” Second, a white man is seen ripping a headscarf from a Muslim woman’s head before violently pushing her to the ground. Third, we’re shown an elderly white bus driver refusing to allow a black man onto his bus.
According to the video: “The police need to know when and where these incidents happen so they can take proper measures to prevent them in the future. It’s not just the victim’s responsibility. Anyone can and should take the initiative. If you observe or experience any threatening or hateful behaviour, even if it isn’t a crime, you should contact the police.”
Devon and Cornwall Police define a hate incident is “any non-criminal incident that is perceived by the victim or any other person to be motivated by hostility or prejudice.
“This may be an incident involving prejudicial behaviour where the criminal threshold isn’t met, such as being excluded from a barber’s shop for being transgender or being called names.”
According to Police, the keyword around hate crime and hate incidents is “perception.”
“This is where the victim or another person feels the victim has been targeted because of a protected characteristic based on their: disability; race or ethnicity; religion or belief; sexual orientation or gender reassignment; sex or gender.”
I wonder if that includes short animations that portray racism as a characteristic of white men only?
