Barriers to Hate Crime Reporting in the UK: The overlap of the public perception, organizational policies, and police processes.

Abstract

The CPS and the police in the UK work with a hate crime definition that heavily relies on victim and witness perception. This presentation succeeds a couple of findings from the study. It reflects on hate crimes in the workplace and how police procedures and human resource policies can become barriers to hate crime reporting. Additionally, what the public perceives to be constituting a crime or hate crime, along with what the police or organisation policies are, further prevents them from reporting hate crimes.

Full text

The overlap of the public perception, organizational
policies, and
police processes
Findings from a thematic research
Barriers to
Hate Crime Reporting
In the UK
Moslem Boushehrian
Moslem.b@surrey.ac.uk
To cite the information in this presentation use:
Boushehrian, M. (2024). Barriers to Hate Crime Reporting in the UK: The overlap of the public perception, organizational
policies, and police processes. Presented at the 16th International Conference on Humanities, Psychology and Social
Sciences, Berlin, Germany. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.35634.41929

AGENDA
Stephen Lawrence Murder
Macpherson Inquiry
Hate Crime Definition
Critical Exploration

Human resources slide 3
1993
1997
1999
2024
•Institutional Racism
•Failures in Investigation
•Recommendations for
Improvement
•Impact on Society

New Hate Crime Definition
There is no legal definition of hostility so we use the everyday understanding of
the word which includes ill-will, spite, contempt, prejudice, unfriendliness,
antagonism, resentment and dislike.
Crown Prosecution Service
"Any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person, to be
motivated by hostility or prejudice, based on a person's disability or perceived
disability; race or perceived race; or religion or perceived religion; or sexual
orientation or perceived sexual orientation or transgender identity or perceived
transgender identity."
Heavily Relies on Perception

Public Perception Organisational Policies
Police Procedures
Implication

Crime Seriousness
Slurs vs Physical Harm
Individual Characteristics
Ethnicity difference
Facial Expression
Spatial/Demographic Reputation
Victim Vulnerability
Legislation
Knowledge and
Evidence
Intention
Public Perception
The Detective Public
Social Experience
Normalisation of victimisation

HUMAN RESOURCES
Friend or Foe?
Policy Clarity Reputation IntelligenceProxy Authority
Civil VS Criminal cases
•Focus the reporting process
on criminal activity rather
than prejudice
•Diverts the Police out of the
process
•Dismantles the progress
Discrimination & EDI
•focus on EDI (Equality,
Diversity, and Inclusion)
•Prejudice, Hate crime, and
Discrimination are used
interchangeably
•None of the participants were
clear on the wording of their
workplace policies
Delivering Justice
•Do police and companies see
eye to eye?
•What would happen if the
victims reported to the police
and not to the HR?
Repeated offenders/victims
•HR and the Police do not
share intelligence
•GDPR
•Victim consent
•Unknown repeated offenders
& Victims
•Missed Opportunities

The overlap of the public perception, organizational policies, and
police processes
Findings from a thematic research
Barriers to
Hate Crime Reporting
Moslem Boushehrian
Moslem.b@surrey.ac.uk
To cite the information in this presentation use:
Boushehrian, M. (2024). Barriers to Hate Crime Reporting in the UK: The overlap of the public perception, organizational
policies, and police processes. Presented at the 16th International Conference on Humanities, Psychology and Social
Sciences, Berlin, Germany. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.35634.41929