Close X
Thursday, November 28, 2024
ADVT 
National

Hate crimes up 37 per cent in 2020: StatCan

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 18 Mar, 2022 10:39 AM
  • Hate crimes up 37 per cent in 2020: StatCan

OTTAWA - New data from Statistics Canada show the number of hate crimes reported to police across the country went up 37 per cent in the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic compared with the previous year.

The agency says 2,669 hate crimes were reported in 2020 — the highest number since comparable data became available in 2009.

That's even as the report shows the overall rate of police-reported crime, excluding traffic offences, dropped 10 per cent from 2019 to 2020.

Statistics Canada says police-reported hate crimes targeting race or ethnicity rose 80 per cent in 2020 compared with 2019 and accounted for the bulk of the national increase.

It says reported hate crimes targeting East or Southeast Asian people went up 301 per cent; those targeting Black people went up 92 per cent; those against Indigenous people went up 152 per cent; and those against South Asian people went up 47 per cent.

The report says the highest increases in police-reported hate crimes were in Nova Scotia (70 per cent), British Columbia (60 per cent), Saskatchewan (60 per cent), Alberta (39 per cent) and Ontario (35 per cent).

No rise was reported in Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick or the Northwest Territories, but the report notes the relatively small population counts and number of hate crimes in the territories usually make year-over-year comparisons less reliable.

Both violent and non-violent hate crimes increased compared with 2019 and contributed “fairly equally” to the overall rise in hate crimes in 2020, Statistics Canada says.

Hate crimes targeting religion declined for the third year in a row following a peak in 2017, the report says. But the 515 incidents reported in 2020 are still higher than what was recorded annually before 2017, it says.

The Jewish and Muslim populations continue to be the most common targets of religion-based hate crimes, it says.

There was a two-per-cent decrease in reported hate crimes targeting sexual orientation in 2020, but the 259 incidents reported are the second highest since comparable data became available in 2009, the agency says.

Statistics Canada says the increase in hate crimes reported in 2020 may still underestimate the number of incidents, given that not all are reported to police.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 18, 2022.

MORE National ARTICLES

254 COVID19 cases for Tuesday

254 COVID19 cases for Tuesday
There are 419 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19 and 63 are in intensive care. In the past 24 hours, one new death (Fraser Health) has been reported, for an overall total of 2,915.    

254 COVID19 cases for Tuesday

More work needed to prevent fraud: B.C. auditor

More work needed to prevent fraud: B.C. auditor
Michael Pickup says in a news release that fraud risk management in the province is decentralized and shared by ministries as well as the Office of the Comptroller General, which provides oversight and support.

More work needed to prevent fraud: B.C. auditor

Lululemon founder starting new venture to find cure for type of muscular dystrophy

Lululemon founder starting new venture to find cure for type of muscular dystrophy
Chip Wilson was diagnosed with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy when he was 32, saying it has contributed to his muscle loss and he expects to not be able to walk without help in eight years. He says the funding will go toward finding a cure for the disorder by the end of 2027.

Lululemon founder starting new venture to find cure for type of muscular dystrophy

Trudeau, NATO stage rebuke of Russia in Latvia

Trudeau, NATO stage rebuke of Russia in Latvia
The prime minister promised Baltic leaders on a whirlwind trip to Latvia that Canada will stand with them to fight Russia's military aggression against Ukraine and its cyberattacks on their countries.

Trudeau, NATO stage rebuke of Russia in Latvia

Feds fine passengers on Sunwing party flight

Feds fine passengers on Sunwing party flight
A half-dozen passengers who were not fully vaccinated when they boarded have now received penalties that could reach a maximum of $5,000 each, Transport Canada said. Under COVID-19 rules, all passengers must be fully vaccinated to board a flight departing the country.

Feds fine passengers on Sunwing party flight

B.C. promises blanket internet coverage by 2027

B.C. promises blanket internet coverage by 2027
In a news release, the province says the plan means many First Nations communities will have high-speed internet access for the first time. B.C. is promising that every home and community will have the service by 2027, which was also promised in the budget announced last month. 

B.C. promises blanket internet coverage by 2027