State‐Level Determinants of Hate Crime Reporting: Examining the Impact of Structural and Social Movement Influences

Abstract

In this article, we investigate factors affecting hate crime policies by examining anti-LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) hate crime reports as a type of policy implementation. Analyzing state-level data drawn primarily from the US Census between 1995 and 2008, we examine how structural and social movement mobilization factors explain hate crime reporting. We find that anti-LGBT hate crimes are more likely to be reported in more urbanized states and in states with both split political elites and a greater number of LGBT social movement organizations. We discuss the implications of our findings for separating the drivers of policy passage from policy implementation and for complementary criminological and social movement explanations for hate crime reporting.

The Convergence of Hate: An Analysis of UCR–NCVS Hate Crime Trends, 2003 to 2020

“…McVeigh et al (2003) utilized a political and interorganizational framework through which to assess hate crime reporting, demonstrating that law enforcement compliance with hate crime reporting statutes was higher in jurisdictions with a greater level of localized political competition and in communities with a more pronounced presence of civil rights organizations. Scheuerman et al (2020) produced similar results for anti-LGTBQ+ hate crimes, finding that reporting was higher in states with a larger share of pro-LGTBQ+ social movement organizations and where the governor and state legislature were more politically competitive.…”

The role of religious contexts on hate crimes, 2003–2017

“…On the other hand, evangelical Protestants’ political engagement and commitment to more conservative ideologies could be associated with a reduction in reported hate crimes. As social movement scholars have noted, the political dynamics of a community shape reporting trends, and communities with less socio‐political representation for marginalized groups (e.g., Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, or Other (LGBTQIA+) civic organizations, higher rates of same‐sex couples) tend to have fewer reported hate crimes (McVeigh, Welch, and Bjarnason 2003; Scheuerman et al 2020). This potential negative association, however, is not due to fewer hate crimes occurrences but is instead due to fewer individuals coming forward to report their victimization experience to the police.…”

“…Given regional trends in hate crime reporting and patterns, we control for whether the county is located in the Southern Census region. Taking note from socio‐political research on hate crimes (e.g., McVeigh, Welch, and Bjarnason 2003; Scheuerman Parris, Faupel, and Werum 2020), we also control for the percent of residents that voted Republican in the most recent election (2004, 2008, and 2016).…”

A higher bar: Institutional impediments to hate crime prosecution

“…For example, hate crime reporting by law enforcement varies across jurisdictions, such that some police departments report no hate crimes for consecutive years while comparable departments report dozens. Among the factors that distinguish law enforcement agencies that report hate crimes from those that do not is the presence of civil rights advocacy organizations (McVeigh et al, 2003; Scheuerman et al, 2020).…”