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A hate crime is a criminal offence against a person or property that is based upon the victim’s race, national or ethnic origin, language, colour, religion, sex, age, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity or expression, or any other similar factor. 

 

Local police are committed to making their communities safe for everyone, so please report a hate crime if you are a victim or witness. If you have experienced a hate incident that may not be considered a crime in the Criminal Code, it is important that you still report it to law enforcement. 

 

 

Report Antisemitism to CIJA

https://www.cija.ca/report_hate

 

 

How to report a hate crime in Vancouver 

If you experience hate, prejudice or bias: 

  • Call 911 if your immediate safety is at risk 

  • If there is no immediate safety risk, and you saw the suspect, or there is physical evidence of an offence, call our non-emergency line at 604-717-3321 

  • If you would like to document this incident and there are no safety risks, no physical evidence, and no identifiable suspects, you can use one of VPD’s PDF forms available online in multiple languages. 

  • Try to keep all related materials and information, including texts and videos, and write down all the details of what happened. 

  • VPD’s Hate Crime investigator can be emailed at vpd.diversity@vpd.ca (*not monitored 24/7). 

 

 

How to report a hate crime in Burnaby 

If you experience hate, prejudice or bias: 

 

 

How to report a hate crime in Richmond 

If you experience hate, prejudice or bias: 

  • Call 911 if your immediate safety is at risk 

  • If there is no immediate safety risk, contact the Richmond RCMP at 604-278-1212. 

  

 

How to report a hate crime in West Vancouver 

If you experience hate, prejudice or bias: 

 

 

How to report a hate crime in North Vancouver 

If you experience hate, prejudice or bias: 

  • Call 911 if your immediate safety is at risk 

  • If there is no immediate safety risk, contact the North Vancouver RCMP at 604-985-1311 or use their online reporting form at https://ocre-sielc.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/nvan/en 

 

 

Report Antisemitic Graffiti

Every municipality in Greater Vancouver has its own bylaws and approach to dealing with graffiti – on public property and on private property. If you see graffiti that needs to be removed, the following links offer the process you need to follow to report it.

 

Vancouver

phone 3-1-1, use the VanConnect phone app, or visit www.vancouver.ca/graffiti

 

Burnaby

https://www.burnaby.ca/services-and-payments/bylaw-enforcement-and-tickets/graffiti

 

City of North Vancouver

https://www.cnv.org/City-Hall/bylaws/Bylaw-Enforcement/graffiti

 

District of North Vancouver

https://www.dnv.org/government-administration/report-problem

 

Richmond

https://infocentre.richmond.ca/app/answers/detail/a_id/40/~/report-graffiti%2C-vandalism-or-illegal-dumping

 

 

Hate propaganda 

Two sections in the Criminal Code of Canada deal with hate propaganda: 

 

Section 318 – Advocating genocide 

Genocide is the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, any identifiable group by killing members or deliberately “inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction.” 

Groups can be identified by colour, race, religion, national or ethnic origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or mental or physical disability. 

 

Section 319 (1) – Public incitement of hatred and 319 (2) 

Every one who, by communicating statements in any public place, incites hatred against any identifiable group where such incitement is likely to lead to a breach of the peace. 

 

Section 319 (2) – Wilful promotion of hatred 

Every one who, by communicating statements, other than in private conversation, wilfully promotes hatred against any identifiable group. 

Definition of mischief to religious property 

 

Section 430(4.1) of the Criminal Code of Canada is used to specifically address crimes against places of worship. 

Everyone who commits mischief in relation to property that is a building, structure or part thereof that is primarily used for religious worship, including a church, mosque, synagogue or temple, or an object associated with religious worship located in or on the grounds of such a building or structure, or a cemetery, if the commission of the mischief is motivated by bias, prejudice or hate based on religion, race, colour or national or ethnic origin.