City of Bloomington Human Rights Commission Issues Annual Report

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
August 14, 2008

For more information, please contact:
Barbara McKinney, Director, City of Bloomington Human Rights Commission, 349-3429, human.rights@bloomington.in.gov
Danny Lopez, Communications Director, City of Bloomington, lopezd@bloomington.in.gov


Bloomington, IN -The City of Bloomington Human Rights Commission (BHRC), responsible for gathering data and issuing reports on local hate incidents, has released its current report, which indicates 29 reported incidents from July 2007 through June 2008. The report is available for the public upon request and online at www.bloomington.in.gov/bloomington-human-rights-commission.

Barbara McKinney, director of the BHRC, emphasized that the number collected each year is reflective only of those incidents that were reported, which may not clearly illustrate an accurate count.

"The report is the best gauge of hate incidents we have, but it is never possible to determine a completely accurate number," said McKinney. "We use the report to get a sense of what is happening in the community with respect to these types of activities."

As is always the case, the hate incidents described in this report take a variety of forms. While 29 are covered in the report, much of the reported activity falls into more than one category, including verbal harassment, actual threats, physical violence and vandalism. McKinney reiterated that while incidents often seem to vary in degree of severity, in each case the victim was concerned enough to reach out for help.

The report also addresses motivations behind each report, ranging from race and national origin bias to anti-religious or anti-gay and lesbian sentiment.

The BHRC receives information for its report from a variety of sources, including the City of Bloomington Police Department, news reports and individuals. People who are victims of hate incidents are urged to report them to the police by calling 911 or to the BHRC by calling 349-3429 or e-mailing human.rights@bloomington.in.gov. The BHRC accepts anonymous reports.

For more information or for copies of the report, please contact the BHRC at 349-3429.

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