NCJ Number
152871
Journal
European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research Volume: 2 Issue: 3 Dated: (1994) Pages: 39-64
Date Published
1994
Length
26 pages
Annotation
Hate crimes are examined in terms of how organizations in the United States and the governments of Germany and the United States are trying to identify the offenders and to measure and prevent these offenses.
Abstract
Hate crimes have occurred throughout history and across countries; they include psychological intimidation and physical persecution and punishment of one group by another. Current European definitions of hate crimes focus on the ethnic minority status of the victim, but do not address the situation of non- ethnic hate crimes. Measurement of hate crimes is difficult; the statistics should be reviewed with skepticism. The United States and Germany share similar problems identifying the parameters of hate crime and investigating it, but the countries differ in their legal approaches in that the German constitution bans neo-Nazi political activity, while the United States constitution protects it. Legislative efforts to punish hate-motivated offenses have produced little success in either country. However, social programs have been established in both countries to address the issue of prevention through education. Footnotes and 62 references