This Is How Common Hate Crimes Are In Illinois Compared To Other States

The Center Square

ILLINOIS — From terror attacks to natural disasters, U.S. history is replete with examples of Americans of different backgrounds unifying in the face of hardship. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic will not likely be remembered as such an occasion. The virus, which originated in China, ushered in a surge of violence directed at Asian Americans at a time when hate crimes were already at their highest level in over a decade.

According to the FBI, hate crimes are those motivated by prejudice and committed against victims based on their race, color, religion, or national origin, as well as based on biases of actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or gender.

In Illinois, there were 95 hate crimes reported in 2019, or 0.7 for every 100,000 people, the ninth-lowest hate crime rate among states. Meanwhile, there were 8,559 incidents nationwide, or 2.6 for every 100,000 people. Of all reported incidents of hate in the state, 52.3 percent were motivated by race, ethnicity, or ancestry, 13.8 percent were motivated by religion, and 13.8 percent were motivated by sexual orientation.

Hate crime reporting in Illinois is more comprehensive than it is across much of the country. There are 728 agencies in the state that track and report hate crime data, covering 95.7 percent of the population. Nationwide, 93.0 percent of the population are covered by agencies tracking and reporting hate crimes.

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