
Rochelle Wilner President	Frank Dimant Chief Executive Officer	Ruth Klein National Director	Prof. Stephen Scheinberg National Chair

Victim Impact of Racially Motivated Crime

By Dr. Karen Mock

Victims and the impact of crimes are increasingly becoming a concern of the justice system. Until recently victims and their rights were all but overlooked, while every effort was made to ensure that the rights of the offender were not violated. However, there is a growing recognition that the victim’s unique position entails specific needs which must be addressed if the victim is not to be further victimized. These needs are compounded when racial motivation is a factor in crimes, as crimes based on victims’ origins often directly attack their basic identity, and effect the victims’ communities.

Purpose

This study was prepared as part of the League for Human Rights of B’nai Brith Canada’s submission to the Commission on Systemic Racism in the Ontario Criminal Justice System, established by the Ontario Government.

The study conducted over a six week period in July/August 1993, examined the victim impact of crime, particularly racially motivated crime, on six racial and religious minority communities in Toronto. The six groups were from the South Asian, Asian, Muslim, Jewish, Black and Aboriginal communities in Toronto. For comparison purposes, two programs dealing with victims were included from the justice system itself, as examples of services available. They were the Community Relations Unit of the Metropolitan Toronto Police, and the Victim/Witness Assistance Program of the Ministry of the Attorney General.

The major purpose of this study was to determine what the perceptions and experiences of racial and religious minority communities in Toronto have been concerning the Ontario criminal justice system, when their community members are victims of crime. As such, the research took a different focus on racism in the criminal justice system, as most previous studies and community interventions have emphasized the role of the minority group member as the alleged or convicted perpetrator of crimes.

Research took the form of individual interviews, in person and/or by telephone, and focus group discussions. Community workers, leaders, and individual members from each of the project groups were consulted, including the victims of crime. Eight focus group discussion, ten personal interview, and six telephone interviews were held. A total of 85 individuals participated in the study. Participants affiliated with over 25 community organizations were involved directly in the study.

Summary of Findings

The study revealed that racially motivated crime is an issue of serious concern to all the groups involved. All of the discussions conducted for this study revealed that racially motivated crime inflicts a great amount of pain which crosses community boundaries. Racially motivated crime, as one dynamic of racism, increases the isolation of minority communities. This isolation, and the victimization inherent in being attacked as an individual or as a community, is exacerbated by the general lack of awareness of victim services. Moreover, the study revealed that where awareness of services exists, accessibility does not always follow.

Racially motivated crime is seen by most communities as part of a broader problem of racism in Toronto. Many respondents, when asked of their definitions of racially motivated crime, mentioned issues such as immigration and welfare policies, which some feel are systemically racist to the extent that they are criminal. There is a general perception that all the manifestations of racism are matters of concern, and that racially motivated crime must be considered as part of a larger problem.

There is a strong feeling that racially motivated crimes seriously affect communities as well as individuals. In some cases, such as the desecration of community centres and religious sites, the community impact is obvious and devastating. However, respondents also indicated that when an individual in the community is attacked because of his/her origins, the entire community is also often noticeably affected. An example of this is the impact that the string of attacks on Tamil men had on the South Asian community in Toronto, and even on other minority groups. When a community becomes aware of incidents, it is often a catalyst for that community to find out what means they have to attain justice. However, a community consciousness is first required that some crimes are racially motivated, and not just coincidentally against minority groups, and that such crimes are unacceptable and not simply part of the fabric of Canadian life.

Although respondents who are active in their communities tend to be aware of what services are available, most victims from the groups consulted are not aware of the specific victim services available. To the extent that awareness exists, minorities, and especially people of colour and recent immigrants, are hesitant to approach the criminal justice system. This reluctance is attributable to many factors. These include past negative experiences with the criminal justice system, particularly over-policing of visible minority neighbourhoods, multiple false accusations and arrests, perceived differential treatment of minorities at all levels of the justice system, negative experiences with justice system officials in minorities’ countries of origin, the desire to maintain privacy because of shame at being attacked, the perception that police will not respond effectively and appropriately to crimes where minorities are victims, and linguistic and cultural barriers. There was also a general consensus that the justice system is neither representative of, nor sensitive to, the communities that it serves, and that recent efforts at rectifying this problem have only effected cosmetic change. Many respondents pointed to the larger problem of systemic racism which often prevents culturally appropriate victim services. Because of these barriers, and because of the significant impact which radically motivated crimes often have on entire communities, changes to the criminal justice system are seen as essential. Although the recommended changes vary widely among individuals and among communities, there was a strong consensus that immediate, meaningful change must occur, and be seen to occur, if minorities are to have faith in the Ontario criminal justice system.

The study concluded that victim assistance programs are urgently needed to better serve racial and ethno-cultural minority communities. Minimally, this entails multilingual outreach to all communities, adequate interpretive services, cultural sensitization service providers, and true multicultural representation. There needs to be coordination between racial and ethno-cultural minority communities and government agencies to enhance outreach and support services for victims of crime. Put simply, government agencies must be aware of the availability of referral and counselling services in the community, and community agencies must be aware of similar and other services (such as victim compensation) provided by the Ontario Government. Adequate financial resources need to be directed by the government to victim services.

Another major conclusion from the study is that the multicultural reality should be better addressed in the courtroom. Many participants in the criminal justice system remain uninformed on issues such as religious attire and the nature of an oath. Continued and expanded anti-racist and multicultural training and sensitization is required at all levels of the criminal justice system, including direct contribution of minority group individuals and organizations to the education process.

Karen Mock is Executive Director of the League for Human Rights of B’nai Brith Canada and served as Project director for this study.

To contact the League for Human Rights,
consult the B’nai Brith Staff Directory or
email us at league@bnaibrith.ca