Hate crimes up nearly 70% in Missouri, says the FBI

Hate crimes are on the rise in Missouri, according to a report compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

The report covers the calendar year of 2021, and it shows the number of hate crimes reported to law enforcement agencies in Missouri jumped by nearly 70 percent last year. 

The report was released by the F-B-I last week. Jay Greenberg is Special Agent in Charge of the F-B-I’s St. Louis office:

“A hate crime itself is defined as any bias-motivated crime…typically we see those broken down into assaults of one form or another, threats of one form or another, or attacks against property that are motivated in a bias.”

Among the findings, the number of hate crimes based on race, ethnicity, or ancestry rose from 76 in 2020 to 119 last year. 

That was the largest category. 

Other categories include sexual orientation, religion, gender, gender identity, disability, and multiple bias.