Is Rape a Hate Crime

Is Rape a Hate Crime?

COM \ 172

August 18, 2014

Is Rape a Hate Crime?

A hate crime is defined as a “criminal offence committed against a person, property, or society that is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender’s bias against a race, religion, sexual orientation, ethnicity/national origin, disability, or gender.” (Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI] 2012) While all rape is not to the same degree, are there times that rape should be classified as a hate crime due to the motivating factors and the effects that the act has on the victims and society as a whole? If a hate crime is defined as a criminal act against a person, property, or society with the added component of bias, and the motivation for rape is misogyny (hatred of women) (Merriam-Webster, 2014), then is rape a hate crime?

The term hate crime has been in use since the 1980s, used mainly in a context with racial and religious bias-motivated crimes. Gender bias made its way into the list of protected groups in 2009 with the passing of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act by expanding the law to include crimes motivated by the victim’s actual or perceived gender. (National Institute of Justice [NIJ] 2010). Since that time, there is very little data showing that gender bias is used as a motivating factor in rape cases. On the FBI website in the Uniform Crime Statistic Report for 2012 there is no data listed pertaining to gender bias motivated crimes, even though, in the Crimes against Persons category there are 15 rapes included in the report. These 15 rapes are included in the other bias categories. Also, not all states have gender bias included in the protected groups listed even though it is recognized in the federal laws.

There are various degrees of rape, and not all rapes would fit the criteria to be charged under a hate crime statute. Rape is no longer considered a sex crime but a violent assault against a victim meant to exert...