Anti-LGBTQ crimes nearly doubled in Sacramento area in 2022, state hate crime report says

The number of anti-LGBTQ hate crime events reported in the four-county Sacramento area nearly doubled in 2022 compared to 2021, according to the Hate Crime in California report released Tuesday by the state Department of Justice, while the overall number of hate crimes in the region increased by nearly 50%.

Hate crime events reported in the region made up of Sacramento, El Dorado, Placer and Yolo counties increased by 44.4% year-over-year, compared to 20.2% statewide, the annual report found. Anti-LGBTQ hate crime events in the region rose from 35 in 2021 to 65 in 2022.

A hate crime refers to a crime committed against a person or property motivated by hate against someone’s race, ethnicity, religion, sex, gender, sexual orientation, age, national origin or physical or mental ability, according to the report.

Anti-LGBTQ, anti-Black hate crimes on the rise

Anti-Black hate crimes made up the largest share statewide, accounting for 652 of 2,120 events (31%). Anti-LGBTQ hate crimes made up the largest share in the Sacramento area, accounting for 65 of 191 events (34%).

There were 51 anti-Black hate crime events reported in 2022 in the Sacramento area, making up 27%, compared to 42 events in 2021.

The report comes days after The Sacramento Bee reported on alleged anti-LGBTQ vandalism in Antelope, where pride flags were stolen and burned from multiple homes.

Anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and legislation across the country have grabbed national attention in recent months, including the passage of the “Don’t Say Gay” bill in Florida that prohibits classroom discussion about sexual orientation or gender identity. Nationwide, 26 anti-trans bills were passed in 2022 and 83 have been passed in 2023 so far, according to the Trans Legislation Tracker, an independent website that monitors legislative developments that bill opponents say curtail transgender rights.

Anti-trans hate crimes contributed to the rise in anti-LGBTQ hate crimes statewide. Across California, hate crime events related to sexual orientation increased by 29% and events related to gender identity increased by 56% in 2022, according to Tuesday’s report.

A 2021 UCLA study found that transgender people were more than four times more likely than cisgender people to be victims of violent crime.

“It goes without saying that this pride season feels a lot different from others,” said Sunitha Menon, Managing Director of Equality California, at a Department of Justice news conference Tuesday morning.

The number of anti-Asian hate crime events reported in the Sacramento region fell from 19 in 2021 to 14 in 2022, but the 2022 number is still the second-highest in the past 21 years.

Hate crimes have been increasing rapidly since 2020 across the United States, according to data collected by the FBI. Nationwide, most 2021 hate crimes – 63% – were motivated by racial or ethnic bias, and 20.4% were related to sexual orientation or gender identity.

Hate crimes still underreported and under-prosecuted, state says

“Reporting a hate crime is not always easy and is not always something someone feels safe and comfortable doing. In all likelihood, these statistics represent underreporting,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said at a news conference Tuesday.

There is also a large gap between the number of hate crimes reported and the number actually prosecuted as such, the data show. Of 2,120 hate crime events reported, only 647 (31%) were referred to prosecutors and 282 (13%) eventually filed as hate crimes. Just 53 resulted in hate crime convictions, less than 3% of reports.

“We too often see what the community knows to be a hate crime not investigated as a hate crime, not eventually identified or prosecuted as a hate crime,” Bonta said.

Along with the report, the Department of Justice issued a notice to local law enforcement agencies with guidance on hate crime laws and investigation procedures “to ensure that state and local law enforcement officials across California … respond appropriately and swiftly to hate crime activity.”

Bonta also urged “victims and witnesses of hate crimes to come forward.” A Department of Justice news release noted that a “CA vs. Hate” hotline and online portal are available at all times in 15 languages for hate crime reporting, and that Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. over 200 languages are available.

The hotline can be reached at 833-866-4283, and the portal at stophate.calcivilrights.ca.gov.