A record number of hate crimes were reported in Los Angeles County in 2023, according to the county’s latest hate crime report.
According to the Los Angeles County Commission on Human Relations, the group behind annual report since 1980, there was a 45% increase in reported hate crimes in the county, going from 930 to 2022 to a whopping 1,350.
Officials in the report called it “the largest number in the history of this report and surpassing the 1,031 hate crimes from 2001 when the September 11th attacks occurred.”
While anti-LGBT crimes increased by 48%, anti-transgender crimes spiked a whopping 125%. Both percentages were the largest amount ever documented in the report. Of those crimes, 97% were violent, and gay men were targeted in 73% of the attacks.
Religious crimes also rose by 90% with anti-Jewish crimes rising by 91%. Anti-Latino/a crimes rose 19% and Anti-Asian crimes saw a 31% increase.
Hate crimes based on gender shot up 142%, followed by religion at 90%, and sexual orientation at 48%.
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Officials also said white supremacist ideology was part of the evidence in nearly 210 crimes that took place in 2023, the largest ever recorded.
In the executive summary portion of the report, the commission noted that while the numbers in this year’s report are “unprecedented,” it also revealed that more hate crimes were being reported.
“For example, our LA vs Hate system provides safe ways for people to report hate and has substantially increased awareness of the importance of reporting,” a portion of the summary read. “We also received substantially more reports for 2023 from well-established sources such as community-based organizations, schools, and law enforcement jurisdictions.”
The commission also noted the numbers in the report refer to victims rather than events.
You can view the report HERE.
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