(OTTAWA) Police-reported hate crimes in Canada rose 27 per cent from 2020 to 2021, following a 36 per cent jump the previous year, according to Statistics Canada.
Over a two-year period, from 2019 to 2021, the number of such crimes increased by 72%, in part due to a particularly high increase during the COVID-19 pandemic.
With respect to the increase in the number of hate crimes noted from 2020 to 2021, Statistics Canada explains it in large part by the increase of 67% in the number of hate crimes targeting a given religion and of 64% in the number of records related to sexual orientation.
The number of hate crimes targeting Arabs and West Asians increased by 46% while those against East and Southeast Asians were 16% higher. Hate crimes against South Asians increased by 21%, while hate crimes targeting Black people decreased by 5% in 2021.
The federal agency observed that the number of hate crimes increased in all provinces and territories in 2021, with the exception of the Yukon, where it remained unchanged.
Their number went from 454 to 488 in Quebec and from 19 to 39 in New Brunswick. A significant increase was observed in Ontario, from 1159 to 1629.
In Nova Scotia, 72 hate crimes were recorded in 2021, compared to 58 the previous year. Over the same period, they increased from 8 to 19 in Prince Edward Island.
