- Conference
- 2018 National Black Members' Conference
- Date
- 21 September 2017
- Decision
- Carried
Conference is deeply concerned that there has been significant rise in hate crime cases in the UK.
Hate crime of any kind, directed against any community, race or religion has absolutely no place in our society. Our diverse communities thrive precisely because of the rich co-existence of people of different backgrounds, faiths and ethnicities and this rich co-existence is something we must treasure and strive to protect. We must uphold the shared values that underpin the British way of life.
Those who commit hate crimes also attack the fundamental values that underpin our diverse society, values of acceptance and respect for others. Through the spread of fear, abuse and violence, hate crime can limit people’s opportunities, stopping them from enjoying the full benefits of our society and can lead to isolation and segregation.
Hate crimes are pernicious; they send the message that some people deserve to be targeted solely because of who they are or who they are believed to be. Such crimes have a deep impact on victims because they are targeted against some intrinsic part of their identity (their race, religion, sexual orientation, disability or gender identity).
Conference reaffirms its unequivocal condemnation of any form of behaviour that is racist, xenophobic, incites hatred, discriminates against or harms members of our diverse community.
Black members are again feeling the brunt of this hatred in workplaces and in our communities. Immediately following the UK narrowly voting for Brexit last year there were numerous reports of Black people and immigrant families being targeted for racial abuse, with an estimated 42 percent increase in hate crime attacks on these groups in one month alone.
Recent terror attacks have also seen spikes in race related hate crimes in the immediate aftermath – there was a 50 percent increase in attacks immediately after the Manchester bombing, and a 34 percent increase after the London Bridge attack, compared to 2016.
There is no excuse for hate crime.
Conference calls upon the national Black Members’ Committee to work with the National Executive Council to:
1)Raise awareness and understanding about hate crime and how to report it, via UNISON’s branches, regions and national committees;
2)Encourage regional Black members’ committees to arrange hate crime awareness training;
3)Produce a leaflet to raise awareness of the issues, reporting and combating hate crime, which can be distributed at UNISON events and conferences.