Hate crime and harassment

Antisocial behaviour includes:

Harassment

Harassment is when someone behaves in a way which makes another person feel distressed, humiliated or threatened. Harassment has been the subject of several pieces of legislation and has more than one legal definition. 

If someone is being harassed because of one of the following characteristics, under the Equality Act 2010, (disability, gender identity, race, religion or belief, or sexual orientation) this can be reported as a hate incident or crime.

Hate crime and hate-related incidents

A hate crime is any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person to be motivated by hostility or prejudice based on a personal characteristic. Incidents might appear in low-level forms of anti-social behaviour but the impact on the victim may be devastating.

Hate crimes are crimes committed against someone because of their:

• disability,
• gender identity,
• race,
• religion or belief,
• sexual orientation

Incidents can range from harassment, abusive language, criminal damage, and property damage, to threats and physical violence. Hate crimes should be reported to the police. 

How to report hate crime to the police?

You can report instances of hate crime or hate-related incidents by:

• coming into any police station, anywhere in London,
• calling a non-emergency police number 101
• calling the emergency phone line 999 when you’re reporting a
• crime that’s in progress or if someone is in immediate danger.

We have a zero-tolerance policy to hate crime and hate-related incidents so you should also report it to us.  We can help by referring you to support agencies, assisting with temporary re-housing, or even taking legal action against the perpetrator.