LICENSED trade staff are being encouraged to report hate crimes as part of a new campaign from Police Scotland.
Feedback from police offers and partners revealed that workers in the late-night industries – including door stewards – are most at risk of experiencing hate crime.
Over 6700 hate crimes were recorded in 2017/18. Of those, 66% involved people being targeted because of their race; 16% had a sexual orientation aggravator; and 7% a religion aggravator.
In a bid to raise awareness of the issue and ensure night-time workers, as well as the wider public, report these crimes, the new hate crime campaign, which launched in February, will run until March 10. It encourages staff to report hate crimes either to Police Scotland directly by calling 101 or to a third-party centre, a list of which can be found on the Police Scotland website (www.scotland.police.uk/contact-us/hate-crime-and-third-party-reporting/)
Key partners in this year’s campaign include the Security Industry Authority and the Scottish Licensed Trade Association.
Chief superintendent John McKenzie, head of Safer Communities, said hate crime “can have a devastating impact upon victims, their families and wider communities”.
“It can leave victims feeling isolated and fearful of what might happen next,” he said.
“It’s important people know they can report it – and how to report it.
“We work with partners, including the Scottish Government, to raise awareness and encourage the reporting of hate crime.
“If victims don’t feel comfortable reporting the matter directly to police, they can report to third party reporting centres who have staff that can identify hate crimes and offer support to victims.”
