Hate crimes hit 12-year high in 2020, FBI says

Hate crimes hit a 12-year high in the United States last year, according to a new report from the FBI.

The number of hate crimes in the U.S. rose last year to the highest level in more than a decade and was driven by a rise in assaults targeting Black victims and victims of Asian descent, the FBI reported.

More than 15,000 law enforcement agencies across the country submitted data to the FBI last year, identifying 7,759 hate crimes in 2020, a 6 per cent increase from 2019 and the highest tally since 2008.