State unveils ‘Help Stop Hate’ program in response to rising hate crimes

[November 01, 2024]  By Medill Illinois News Bureau

By AMALIA HUOT-MARCHAND
Medill Illinois News Bureau
for Capitol News Illinois

CHICAGO –With global tensions and an intensely partisan presidential campaign fueling division among Americans, Illinois is launching the Help Stop Hate program to combat the severe increase in hate crime throughout the state.

“We are here today to officially launch Help Stop Hate, a new resource that will help protect and empower victims and witnesses to incidents of hate through a free, confidential and multilingual service,” Gov. JB Pritzker said at a Chicago news conference Wednesday.

According to the Council on American-Islamic Relations’ Chicago branch, there has been a 196% increase in anti-Muslim hate crimes in Chicago since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. The Anti-Defamation League reports a 379% increase in antisemitic incidents since 2019 in Illinois.

“As governor of this great state, as a person, and as someone who has stood up against hate throughout my life, I am horrified by this trend. Horrified,” Pritzker said.

This program was announced as hate crime incidents are at a record high since the FBI began collecting the data in 1991. As a recent example, an Orthodox Jewish man was shot Saturday while entering a synagogue in West Rogers Park this weekend. Although the crime is still being investigated, the governor said he fears antisemitism is at play. On Oct. 14, 2023, a 6-year-old Palestinian-American boy, Wadea Al-Fayoume, was stabbed to death by his landlord in a suspected hate crime.

“Please understand that at this moment, there are people gleefully working to empower our ugliest traits – bigotry, exclusion, vitriol, suspicion – all in the name of pure, unfettered hate,” Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton said.

The Illinois Department of Human Rights and the state’s Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes oversee the program. It allows people who have experienced hate crimes to go to IlStopHate.org or call 877-458-HATE and talk about the incident. They will be directed to a specialized resource based on the nature of the crime.

They can, for example, speak to professionals from their own communities, acquire help dealing with trauma or connect with resources that can provide additional safety measures. The victim can also report the crime to state or local police, who will investigate further.

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks at a news conference Wednesday to unveil the state’s new Help Stop Hate program. He’s joined by (left to right) Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, Illinois Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, Illinois Department of Human Rights Director Jim Bennett, and Executive Director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice Chicago Grace Pai. (Medill Illinois News Bureau by Amalia Huot-Marchand)

The program will be funded by a $1.3 million grant over three years from the U.S. Department of Justice and through the IDHR’s general funding. This assures Help Stop Hate will be a long-term resource, officials said.

According to Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, the multifaceted approach will also support data collection on hate-motivated crimes, which are severely underreported. Officials said data is inconsistent because some victims are reluctant to report hate crimes for various reasons. Often, victims see hate crime as a part of daily life; they fear their concerns will be dismissed by law enforcement; or, as Stratton said, they don’t trust the systems currently in place.

Jim Bennett, IDHR director, said a statewide study on hate crimes will be conducted in 2025.

One bill in the General Assembly would also seek to require law enforcement to undergo mandatory training on “crimes motivated by bias.” But that measure, House Bill 5368, was re-referred to the House Rules Committee in April, a procedural step that can often indicate a bill is a long way from passage.

According to the Movement Advancement Project, only 12 states mandate law enforcement to undergo training on identifying and fighting hate crimes, including crimes concerning sexual orientation or gender identity.

“At this moment in our history, when some are condoning hateful violence and rhetoric, I encourage Illinoisans to stand up against it, show up for your communities,” Pritzker said.

Amalia Huot-Marchand is a graduate student in journalism with Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications, and a Fellow in its Medill Illinois News Bureau working in partnership with Capitol News Illinois.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.