A Ten-Point Plan for Reducing Hate Crimes

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1. Acknowledge and condemn violent hate crimes whenever they occur. Senior government leaders should send a strong and immediate political signal that violent crimes which appear to be motivated by prejudice and intolerance will be investigated thoroughly and prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
2. Enact laws that expressly address hate crimes. Governments should recognize hate crimes as the more serious crimes that they are while defining categories of bias motivation broadly. They should enact laws that provide enhanced penalties for crimes committed because of the victim's race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, mental and physical disabilities, or other similar forms of discrimination.
3. Strengthen enforcement and prosecute offenders. Governments should ensure that those responsible for hate crimes are held accountable under the law, that the enforcement of hate crime laws is a priority for the criminal justice system, and that the record of their enforcement is well documented and publicized.
4. Provide adequate resources to law enforcement bodies. Governments should ensure that police and investigators - as the first responders in cases of violent crime - have the resources and training to detect bias motives, and that prosecutors have been trained to apply the legal measures required to prosecute hate crimes.
5. Undertake parliamentary or other special inquiries into the problem of hate crimes. Such official inquiries should investigate ways to better respond to hate crimes, but also seek creative ways to deal with the roots of intolerance through education.
6. Monitor and report on hate crimes. Governments should establish or strengthen official systems of monitoring and reporting to provide accurate data, including on the victim groups targeted, for informed policy decisions to combat intolerance. These monitoring systems should include improved access to complaints procedures by individual victims and advocacy groups through the introduction of measures such as third party reporting.
7. Create and strengthen antidiscrimination bodies. Official antidiscrimination and human rights bodies should have the authority to address hate crimes through monitoring, reporting, and assistance to victims.
8. Reach out to community groups. Governments need to take steps to increase the confidence of minority communities by demonstrating a willingness to work more closely with human rights and community-based organizations in the reporting and registration of hate crimes and on measures to provide equal protection for all under the law.
9. Speak out against official intolerance and bigotry. Freedom of speech allows considerable latitude for offensive and hateful speech, but public figures should be held to a higher standard. Members of parliament and local government leaders should be held politically accountable for bigoted words that encourage xenophobia and violence and create a climate of fear for minorities. 
10. Encourage international cooperation on hate crimes. Governments should support and strengthen the mandates of intergovernmental organizations - like the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance, and the Fundamental Rights Agency - that are addressing discrimination.  Governments should also provide a detailed accounting on the incidence and nature of hate crimes to these bodies in accordance with political and other commitments.