A Hate Crime is as it says, a crime that is committed due to Hate. This ‘Hate’ is usually motivated by somebody having prejudice or hostility towards another person against what we call a protected characteristic. There are several protected characteristics, these are:

• Disability
• Gender/Gender Identity
• Race
• Ethnicity/Nationality
• Religion/Faith/Belief
• Sexual Orientation
• Alternative Subculture

Sometimes, people also do things to another which is still classed as ‘Hate’ but may not necessarily fall into the bracket of a Crime, this is called a Hate Incident. Both acts are still very serious and are not needed in today’s World, just because of the way somebody looks, acts or thinks does not entitle another human to hurt them in any way, shape or form. We are all different and that is OK!