The total number of reported hate crimes last year was down slightly when compared to 2012 figures — 5,928 in 2013 versus the 2012 figure of 6,573.

Among the report’s findings for 2013:

• Of the 5,928 incidents reported, six were multiple-bias hate crime incidents involving 12 victims.
• Of the 5,922 single bias incidents reported, the top three bias categories were race (48.5 percent), sexual orientation (20.8 percent), and religion (17.4 percent).
• Of the reported 3,407 single-bias hate crime offenses that were racially motivated, 66.4 were motivated by anti-black or African-American bias, and 21.4 percent stemmed from anti-white bias.
• 60.6 percent of the reported 1,402 hate crime offenses based on sexual orientation were classified as anti-gay (male) bias.
• Law enforcement agencies identified 5,814 known offenders in the 5,928 bias-motivated incidents. Of these offenders, 52.4 percent were white and 24.3 percent were black or African-American.
• Of the 6,933 hate crime offenses reported in 2013, 63.9 percent were crimes against persons (i.e., intimidation, assaults, rapes, murders), while 35 percent were property crimes (mostly acts of destruction/damage/vandalism). The rest were considered crimes against society (like drug offenses or prostitution).

“Hate crimes are different from other crimes because they affect not only the victims and their families, but generate fear and insecurity for the entire community they target,” said David Stacy, HRC’s Government Affairs Director. “While reporting statistics on hate crimes based on sexual orientation – and now on gender identity – are important first steps, so much more work is needed to prevent bias-motivated violence. For example, too many states still do not have an LGBT-inclusive state-level hate crimes law, and we are committed to working with our partners and allies to change that. All people should have the opportunity to live openly, honestly, and safely in their community without fear of harassment or violence.”
Here in Virginia, 12 of a total 119 reported hate crimes were committed against someone’s sexual orientation. There were no reported crimes against someones gender identity (this was the first year GI was included in reporting)

Newport News lead over other localities with 2 reported hate crimes, though the FBI discourages ranking as “rankings ignore the uniqueness of each locale,” with issues like population density and degree of urbanization making it hard to compare areas.

Richmond had no sexual orientation or GI reported hate crimes, but one dealing with ethnicity.

Hate crimes began being reported in 2009, however reporting of these crimes is not mandatory. This can impact the accuracy of these reports. HRC reported “thousands of police agencies across the nation did not submit data,” including one agency with population of more than 250,000 people.