Suspected Anti-Muslim Hate Crimes Increase After Terror Events

• In Event: Roundtable: Domestic and International Terrorism

Abstract

In the wake of the Paris terror attacks of November, 13, 2015 and the San Bernardino, Calif. terror attack of December 2, 2015 anti-Muslim hate crime attacks appear to have risen sharply across the United States to a level nearly three times the monthly average of the last five years.

The number of reported anti-Islamic hate crimes over the last five years, as classified by police, has averaged 12.6 per month, with an average annual number of 150.8 according to Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) data. In the month following the Paris attacks, from November 13 to December 13, there have been at least 37 suspected hate crimes and eleven alone in the week following the San Bernardino terror attack. The 37 suspected hate crime cases are 2.94 times the average calendar monthly number seen from 2010-2014.

Author

• Brian Levin, California State University, San Bernardino