Skip to Main Content
report now
Hate Crime - hero image

Stories

Don't be afraid, speak up - silence hides hate

report hate now

A collection of accounts and stories about hate crime and its impact

Here are some stories from people who have witnessed or been a victim of hate incidents and crimes.

Reporting a hate crime can help!

In November 2017, Healey was a victim of disability hate crime. He has kindly shared his experience with us.

One evening in November, Healey and a friend entered a fast food restaurant in Leamington Spa. Healey went to find a table, while his friend ordered at the counter. After he sat down, a group of boys in their mid-teens, who were sat at the table behind, began to harass him. They were shouting and throwing things at him. Healey ignored the boys, but they carried on – they touched and blew on his hair, spat straw wrappers at him, and made exaggerated gestures to mock his disability. Healey felt very scared. The staff did nothing to intervene. After the incident, Healey was very shaken.

The incident was reported using www.reporthatenow.com.The report was dealt with by EQuiP (Warwickshire Equality and Inclusion Partnership), who got in contact with Healey the next day. Healey wished to keep his identity private - EQuiP were very understanding, and dealt with the situation whilst still allowing Healey to remain anonymous. He felt supported and listened to, and was able to guide the process and decide what he wanted to happen. Healey felt it was a real shame that the staff in the restaurant had not done anything to step in or address the situation.  EQuiP contacted the restaurant to tell them about the incient and to offer training and support to their staff.

The police were informed of the incident, and they looked at the CCTV. After reporting the incident, Healey felt more relaxed. If there were to be another incident, he would report via the website again.  The process was convenient and easy, he was able to remain anonymous and EQuiP handled his report efficiently and sensitively.

Healey’s advice to anyone who is a victim of hate crime is:

"...If you’re not comfortable reporting to the police, report the incident to EQuiP, who can help you to resolve the situation. Reporting anonymously can help you to feel more comfortable. I felt much better after reporting what happened to me..."

When reporting a hate crime or hate incident via www.reporthatenow.com you have the option to remain completely anonymous. You can also give your name but then choose for your report to be dealt with without sharing your details. Once you’ve reported on the website, you will be allocated a dedicated EQuiP officer who will get in touch to talk about what happened. They will listen to your story and offer advice and support. Only your dedicated EQuiP officer will know your identity if you wish.  For more information about the reporting process, go: After You Report

My experience of Homophobic Hate Crime

In March 2018, Dan Browne, Chair of Warwickshire Pride experienced homophobic abuse whilst running a market stall in Stratford-upon-Avon on behalf of the charity.  Dan has kindly volunteered to tell us about this experience and offers advice to others who may also have been a victim. 

Read More
Speaking up: A personal story of abuse and prejudice

An upsetting account of how abuse and hate crime has effected the day to day life of a muslim lady from Warwickshire who wears a niqab.  This is a first hand account that demonstrates the impact racial and religious abuse can have.  

Watch Video
Speaking out: Trish's Story

Trish Adudu from BBC Radio Coventry and Warwickshire shares her experience of being a victim of racist abuse.

Watch Video
Successful Prosecutions: Disability bullying and assault 

The victim had been involved in a car accident in 1994 which impairs her ability to respond quickly. She also has short-term memory loss. The defendant, her husband, systematically belittled her for her disability. He assaulted her over a sustained period. The victim gave evidence by way of interview and a live link to prevent her having to return to the area.

A Victim Personal Statement was read to the court. The prosecutor said that the offending 11 demonstrated a progressive pattern of belittling, undermining and bullying behaviour based wholly or partially on the victim's disability. The defendant was given a 15 months custodial sentence suspended for 2 years. This would have been 12 months, but for the aggravating feature of disability hostility. A restraining order of 4 years was also granted.

Successful Prosecutions: Homophobic aggravation

A gay couple, and the son of one of the men, were walking through the town centre when they encountered the defendant. One of the men had testified in support of his son in a trial involving the defendant’s son. The defendant’s language became abusive and homophobic. She was very aggressive and made threats towards both men as well as the child. She also threatened to report the complainants to the police falsely alleging he molested her son. The defendant was found guilty and sentenced to a six month community order, which would have been a fine had it not been for the homophobic aggravation.

Successful Prosecutions: Harassment

The complainant had been subjected to gratuitous transphobic abuse over the course of several weeks. After the last of these incidents, the defendant was  identified as the offender, arrested and formally interviewed.

Police referred the case to the CPS for a charging decision. The defendant pleaded guilty to harassment without violence, and was sentenced to a term of 3 months imprisonment suspended for 9 months.

The terms included a Drug Rehabilitation Requirement for 6 months and a requirement to undergo supervision by the Probation Service for 9 months. The court also made a restraining order for a period of 12 months, prohibiting the defendant from contacting the complainant directly or indirectly.

Successful Prosecutions: Racial violence

The defendant went into a shop with his girlfriend where he was racially abusive to the shopkeeper and struck him with his fist in the chest. CCTV was available but the video had been corrupted. The defendant denied assault and at first accused the shopkeeper of assaulting him.

The defendant’s partner was not prepared to offer evidence against him. Charges of racially aggravated common assault were brought.

At trial the defendant was found guilty and sentenced to six months imprisonment, increased by two months for the racial hostility. In addition, in order to provide some future protection to the complainant, a restraining order was applied for and granted by the court, restricting contact with the complainant and entry to his shop.

My experience of Homophobic Hate Crime

I had been looking forward to the day for some time and hoped to engage positively with the public.

Sadly, from the moment I had set up the stall it began to go horribly wrong. Over the next three hours I was subjected to over 100 incidents of homophobia. The first person who came over shouted at me and said an LGBT+ stall had no place in Stratford. Many other people walked by the stall and made comments such as “that’s disgusting”, “that’s not right”, “ugh” and “that kind of thing is sick”. There were also lots of negative looks from people, and at one point I thought a man was going to punch me. Finally, somebody who came up to the stall said that being LGBT+ is “an illness that people can’t help catching”. After putting up with these incidents for a three-hour period, I decided to pack up and leave. I felt unsafe.

Although the incidents were reported, it was not done at the time. My main concern was getting away from Stratford as quickly as possible and processing what had happened. The next morning, I reported the incidents online.

The response from Warwickshire Police was fantastic. Within minutes of reporting the incidents I received a phone call from an officer to acknowledge the report and arrange a meeting with me to discuss the incidents in more detail. This reassured me, and it was nice to know that my report was being taken seriously.

Later that week I attended my local Police station and spent some time having a statement taken. Again, it was a positive experience and I definitely felt supported. Over the next few days a couple of other officers contacted me to offer support.

After an investigation had taken place, sadly it was difficult to identify any of the people who had been abusive towards me. I knew that it was going to be difficult to identify anyone due to the market being busy and the possibility of CCTV not picking up the incidents. However, I was certainly happy with the way that Warwickshire Police handled my reporting of the hate incidents. They could not have been more supportive.

My advice to anyone who has been a victim of hate crime or a hate incident is to report it. Even if it’s not possible to find the perpetrators, the Police will take any reports seriously and do their best to find the culprits. Times have moved on and hate crimes against LGBT+ people are taken as seriously as all other forms of hate crime.

Don't be afraid, speak up - silence hides hate

report hate now