Report on Homeless Hate Crimes Released
Advocates, homeless shelter workers, and the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) all began to recognize that reports of hate crimes and violent acts against people experiencing homelessness were increasing with frequency and brutality.
As a result, in 1999, NCH began publishing annual reports documenting hate crimes and violent attacks against people experiencing homelessness.
These annual reports have not only served to document the number of deaths and non-lethal attacks, but have included the individual stories of the victims of these crimes. This annual study makes evident the great number of crimes as well as the large geographic area in which they occur.
Data from the most recently published report found that during the six-year period from 1999 to 2004:
- Total number of violent acts over 6 years: 386
- Total number of deaths over 6 years: 156
- Total number of non-lethal attacks over 6 years: 230
- Number of cities where crimes occurred ove r 6 years: 140
- Number of states where crimes occurred over 6 years: 39 (plus Puerto Rico)
- Age ranges of the accused/convicted: from 11 to 65 years of age
- Age ranges of the victims: from 4 months old to 74 years of age
- Gender of victims: 296 males and 44 females
View the full report on the National Coalition for the Homeless website.
