Austin led Texas in the number of hate crimes reported last year, according to FBI data. The FBI’s 2017 hate crime statistics data show the state capital had 18 total incidents, marking the third year in a row the city saw hate crimes in the double digits.
Dallas was second in the state with 14 hate crimes reported last year, and Fort Worth followed closely with 13 incidents.
Of those reported hate crimes in Austin, 10 were motivated by race, ethnicity or ancestry, four were motivated by sexual orientation, three were by religion and one was motivated by gender identity.
In 2016, the city saw 19 hate crimes, up from 13 in 2015. Race, ethnicity or ancestry were also the predominant motivators both those years.
Nationally, hate crimes increased for the third straight year. According to the FBI, the number of reported incidents rose by 17 percent in 2017.
Law enforcement documented 7,175 hate crimes last year, up from roughly 6,121 in 2016. The crimes were most commonly motivated by race and ethnicity, accounting for just under 60 percent of all incidents. Religion was a motivator for roughly 20 percent of hate crimes, while sexual orientation was a motivator for about 15 percent of attacks.
The FBI reports that just over half of hate crime offenders nationwide were white, 21 percent were black or African-American, and 19 percent were unknown.
Read the full report on hate crimes in Texas from the FBI here.
