Reported hate crimes down slightly in 2022, but have spiked overall since pandemic: TPS report

The Toronto Police Service’s (TPS) annual hate crime report showed a slight drop in reported hate crimes in 2022, but overall they’ve spiked dramatically since the pandemic began.

The report, which was presented to the TPS Board on Thursday, outlines how the numbers skyrocketed after COVID-19 emerged.

“The number of reported hate crimes in 2022 is 74 per cent higher than the pre-pandemic level in 2019,” it states.

That number is also 40 per cent higher than the 10-year average.

The data used in the report is based on hate crimes reported to the TPS between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2022.

Despite that daunting overall increase since the pandemic, the TPS noted a slight decrease in the total number of hate crimes reported in 2022 compared to 2021, falling a modest six per cent.

The most frequently reported offences motivated by hate in 2022 were mischief to property, assault, and uttering threats, the TPS said, with the Jewish, Black, and 2SLGBTQ+ communities the most frequently targeted.

The report also found the following:

• The Jewish community and the Black community were the most frequently victimized groups for hate-motivated mischief to property occurrences
• The 2SLGBTQ+ communities were the most frequently victimized groups for hate-motivated assault occurrences
• The Black community and the 2SLGBTQ+ communities were the most frequently victimized groups for hate-motivated uttering threats

Hates crimes down on public transit, up at schools

Disturbing acts of violence on public transit have made headlines lately, but the report says incidents of reported hate crimes actually dropped by 15 per cent year over year on Toronto’s buses, subways and streetcars.

When they did take place “the Asian community were the most frequently victimized group,” the report found.

While reported hate crimes on public transit saw a decline, they were up at schools “however 90 per cent of these hate crimes were non-violent mischief–related offences,” the TPS stressed.

The war in Ukraine has also apparently raised tensions in Toronto.

“There was also an increase in anti-Ukrainian and anti-Russian hate crimes reported to the Service following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022,” the report states.

In a release, Deputy Chief Robert Johnson didn’t put much weight into the slight drop in reported hate crimes in 2022, saying “we know they continue to be under reported for several reasons, including fear and retaliation.”

“Hate crimes remain a priority for our Service and we will continue to work alongside our communities to break down barriers and foster an atmosphere of trust, as we encourage those impacted by these crimes to report them to police.”