This resource guide is a practical tool for NGOs working to prevent and respond to hate crimes in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) region. It presents examples of successful projects in combating hatred and promoting human rights across the OSCE area.
Authors: Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights
Crimes motivated by prejudice, also known as hate crimes or bias crimes, occur all over the world. Respect and equal rights for all are necessary foundations to any stable society.
Crimes motivated by prejudice against people because of their identity are incompatible with these values. For governments, hate crimes that go unchecked pose a serious security challenge, as individual acts can spiral into civil unrest. In the most extreme situations, they can lead to wars within and across national borders. Although the primary responsibility for preventing and punishing hate crimes must lie with the state, NGOs have proven they have an important part to play in breaking this cycle of violence.
This resource guide aims to assist NGOs working to prevent and respond to hate crimes in the OSCE region by providing essential tools for their work in a simple but comprehensive document.
The guide provides information on hate crimes in the OSCE region, measures by governments and civil society to combat them, and examples of strategies that NGOs have found useful and effective.