Join the conversation: ‘Towards a national system for classifying and recording hate crimes in Australia’ with our speakers Senator the Hon Kristina Keneally, Mr Luke Cornelius APM and Race Commissioner Mr Chin Tan and hosted by Dr Matteo Vergani - CRIS member and Senior Research Fellow, Alfred Deakin Institute.
The COVID-19 pandemic prompted numerous incidents of racial abuse, especially against Asian-Australians. However, we don’t really know if these incidents increased during the pandemic, or by how much, because there is no baseline and no comprehensive measurement of hate crimes and hate incidents in Australia. One of the main reasons why Australia does not have a centralised repository of hate crime data is that there are different legislative frameworks across different states, and there is no common definition of hate crime throughout the country. Building a centralised, comprehensive and consistent repository of data requires a significant investment of resources, political commitment and support from all stakeholders, including law enforcement agencies, human rights agencies and civil society.
In this webinar, our panelists will discuss barriers and opportunities to collecting data and creating a centralised repository of hate crime data in Australia. We will discuss how to harmonize hate crime legislation and policing strategies across different Australian states, and understand what are the roles and division of responsibilities between federal, state and local governments and agencies in terms of tackling hate. The panel will discuss the difference between collecting data about hate crimes and hate incidents that do not meet the threshold for a crime. Finally, the panel will discuss how to harmonize responses to different forms of hate, from racism to ableism, from ageism to transphobia, without leaving anyone behind.
Speakers
Senator the Hon Kristina Keneally
Senator for New South Wales Deputy Labor Leader in the Senate Shadow Minister for Home Affairs Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship
Assistant Commissioner Luke Cornelius APM
Victoria Police
Race Commissioner Mr Chin Tan
Australian Human Rights Commission
In preparation for the panel we recommend viewing the following:
Videos:
- Why is it important to collect hate incidents data in order to fight hate? Interview with Peter Wertheim from the Executive Council of Australian Jewry: Access the video here
- Why should we collect hate crime data? Interview with Prof Steven Chermak from Michigan State University: Access the video here
- Explaining the submission to the Parliamentary inquiry into anti-vilification protections, interview with Catherine Dixon from the Victorian Equal Opportunities and Human Rights Commission: Access the video here
Websites:
- The NEW Tackling Hate website: www.tacklinghate.org . In particular Understanding and addressing the gap in hate data collection in Australia