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Oakville Beaver | Thursday, June 22, 2023 | 32 insidehalton.com 30- day FREE | trial. Find the hearing aid that i is right for you! This year, make the most of your summer experiences with better hearing. Whether you're planning a road trip, a relaxing beach vacation, or an exciting outdoor concert, better hearing can help. Studies show, hearing aid users are:** © 40% have better “) 3x more likely to be conversations happier than those without FREE hearing aid trial today!" 117 LAKESHORE ROAD WEST 515 DUNDAS STREET WEST, UNIT 1 2419 MARINE DRIVE 3075 HOSPITAL GATE, SUITE 323 iciaielamacteiog NS| NTD-OAKB 19 and older at no cost. The resus ofthis assessment wl bs 1 the Audloogial Re wall apply. Child hearing Offer not valid in Quebec. Offer not applicable for /2023. " \itions. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2021. License: CC IBNEWS WHAT IS A HATE CRIME IN CANADA? IT HAS BEEN WIDELY REPORTED THAT HATE CRIMES ARE ON THE RISE, BUT WHAT CONSTITUTES A HATE CRIME? JAIME BYERS It has been widely re- ported that hate crimes are on the rise, but what con- stitutes a hate crime? WHAT THE LAW SAYS The Criminal Code of Canada includes several sections regarding hate crimes. Section 318 covers advo- cating genocide, the act of ATE CRIME primarily used by an iden- tifiable group. Anyone who commits a mischief crime that causes actual danger to life is lia- ble to imprisonment for li- ear A 1996, amendment tothe nal Code allows judg- Ms stom use ea notivation by hate upporting or the killing of members of an identifiable group (de- fined as any section of the tional or ethnic origin, age, ntation, ’). The punish- mentis imprisonment fora term not longer than five ars. Section 319 covers pub- lic incitement of hatred, which includes publicly in- citing or promoting hatred ing the Holocaust. The punishment ranges from a fine of no more than $5,001 toimprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, depending on the serious- ness of the crime commit- ted. Section 430, subsection 4.1, covers hate motivated mischief mmitted against property that is as an factor when it comes to sentenc- WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF A HATE CRIME? One example of a hate crime could be vandalizing property with hateful me sages targeted at an identi. fiable group. Because van- dalism is a crime and the crime in this example is motivated by hate, it could be considered a hate crime. WHAT IF IT'S HATE, BUT NOTA CRIME? Non-criminal acts of ha- tred are considered hate/ bias-motivated incidents, which the] Hamilton roree Servi ootivted by byt the same fac. tors as a hate crime but does not reach the thresh- old of a criminal offence." WHAT ARE SOME EXAMPLES OF HATE/BIAS MOTIVATED INCIDENTS? Name-calling and using racial insults would be ex- Dreamstime photo THE RISING TIDE OF HATE Hate crimes are rising all across ‘the province, amid a backdrop of deepening political divisions and a staggering decline in civility, both in person and online. The reported crimes are just the tip of the iceberg — and only a tiny fraction of those result in convictions. The pain is widespread and raw, but there are solutions to explore, too. CODE to read an investigate the problem of hate what efforts are being made to root out hatred. amples of hate/bias-moti- vated incidents. This ex- ample would not meet the threshold of a criminal of- fence, so it would not be considered a hate crime. WHAT DO THE NUMBERS \Y? Statistics Canada re- ports that the number of police-reported hate crimes rose by 72 a cent from 2019 to 2021, from 1,912 to 3,229 over r that period.