“Hate crime is a terrible way to begin Pride Month. The flag-burning incident has proved sobering to a city police department seeking to support marginalized communities better.
People burning gay flag free#
More: Previous Burlington Free Press reporting on the ambiguities of hate crime enforcement.Īccording to Wolfe, the rise in reporting in Vermont can be partially attributed to improved collaboration between Vermont State Police and the Vermont Attorney General’s Office to “help improve responses and recognition of hate crimes.” What is Vermont law enforcement doing to learn from tragedy? For one, victims do not always seek out law enforcement to report incidents. Tracking the actual rates of hate crimes can be challenging. “If we look at the numbers that have been publicly reported by the FBI in terms of voluntary reporting from law enforcement, we’ve seen a rise of reported hate crimes by law enforcement in Vermont over the last couple of years,” he said. “There’s no question that nationally, cities, towns and states are receiving more reports and are connecting more investigations of reported hate crimes," said Julio Thompson, assistant to the Vermont attorney general. Vermont officials are well aware of the disturbing trends. "When one of us is hurt out of hate due to our identities, many others experience fear, pain and feelings of isolation." Increased reports of hate crimes in Vermont, nationwide “Identity-related crimes have a ripple effect," said Skylar Wolfe, director of the SafeSpace Anti-Violence Program at the Vermont Pride Center.
This incident comes amid a slew of Pride flag burnings and other hate-fueled crimes in New York City and reflects a broader trend of increased hate crimes nationwide. It’s just frightening that someone thought that that was okay that it was an acceptable risk due to their hatred.” This isn’t something to be taken lightly. Said Searle: “It’s a lot more than just burning a flag down.