Hate Crime Reports On The Rise Again

The number of hate crime incidents reported to law enforcement agencies in Missouri rose by nearly 70 percent in 2021.

That’s according to data just released by the FBI which says most incidents were associated with victims’ race.

Last year, 119 Missourians reported they were targeted for their race, ethnicity or ancestry, up from  76 race-related hate crimes in 2020.

After race, hate crimes related to sexual orientation were the most prevalent in Missouri and doubled from 2020 to 2021, rising from 16 to 33.

Hate crimes related to victims’ religion also doubled from 14 to 22.

An FBI spokesman says most offenses involved simple assaults and occurred in or around homes.