Efforts to tackle hate crime in the Bradford district will be showcased during National Hate Crime Awareness Week from 8 October to 15 October.
Bradford Council, Bradford Hate Crime Alliance and partners will work together to reinforce their commitment to tackle hate crime in all its forms.
On Saturday 8 October at Bradford City AFC home game with Stockport County a Hate Crime awareness film will be shown on the big screen at half time followed by interviews on the pitch and distribution of hate crime awareness material.
Across the week there will be in-person events, coffee mornings, online workshops and social media awareness campaigns.
Hate Crime is defined as ‘any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim, or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards someone based on a personal characteristic’.
On Monday, 10 October, Madni Centre Masjid will raise awareness on Hate Crime and Islamophobia. Also running on Monday is a session by The Restorative Justice which will introduce the West Yorkshire Hate Crime Awareness Course which is delivered to those who receive a Conditional Caution from West Yorkshire Police for committing a Hate Crime.
On Thursday the Hate to Radicalisation interactive session will look at the potential pathways to radicalisation and how hate can play a part in this. The Bangladeshi Youth Organisation will launch a video in Bangladeshi around hate crime, on Thursday. The Bradford African Community open their doors to run a discussion session on the Friday.
Across the week Stronger Communities Team at Bradford Council in partnership with Bradford Hate Crime Alliance will be holding Hate Crime information stalls across the District, creating safe spaces to have conversations with residents: Broadway Shopping Centre on Tuesday; Airedale Shopping Centre in Keighley on Wednesday; and at the University of Bradford on Tuesday.
Image: Bradford Council
Cllr Abdul Jabar, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Neighbourhoods and Community Safety, said: “Every year in October we here in the Bradford District welcome Hate Crime Awareness Week. Whilst lots of good work happens across the year in delivering our Hate Crime Strategy, this week provides us with an extra opportunity to raise even more awareness, to help people learn about what hate crime is, how to get help and report it. During awareness periods like this we feel proud of our District-wide Shared Values movement a positive long term drive to stamp out hate, discrimination and prejudice in all its forms so that together we can build a safe, fair, and an inclusive Bradford. We look forward to talking to many people across the week and beyond about how we can Respect, Care, Share and Protect each other.”
Charles Dacres, Director at Bradford Hate Crime Alliance said “Having researched the needs of our communities and how we can enable them to report hate crime, alongside our existing reporting centres we are thrilled to be able to launch Listen Bradford, a hate crime reporting web app developed alongside Bradford University which allows anyone, anywhere, at any time within the Bradford District, to report a hate crime. We encourage everyone to download the app and report hate crime wherever you see it across Bradford whether you are a victim or a witness. Responsibility for tackling hate crime lies with all of us. We are listening.”
