Metadata
Title
Hate or bias incident
Category
undergraduate
UUID
f4aab6fba5bf4bfe900fb9f3929719ee
Source URL
https://ophd.berkeley.edu/topics/hate-or-bias-incident/
Parent URL
https://cejce.berkeley.edu/geneq/about-geneq
Crawl Time
2026-03-10T04:50:57+00:00
Rendered Raw Markdown

Hate or bias incident

Source: https://ophd.berkeley.edu/topics/hate-or-bias-incident/ Parent: https://cejce.berkeley.edu/geneq/about-geneq

The following information is intended to connect all UC Berkeley members (faculty, students, staff, and visitors) to support and reporting options if they have experienced or witnessed a hate or bias incident.

Report a hate or bias incident

Anyone who experienced or witnessed a hate and bias incident is encouraged to make a report to the Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination (OPHD) in any of the following ways:

OPHD will assess the report and reach out to anyone impacted to offer supportive resources and information about rights and options. If the conduct alleged in the report would violate UC policy, OPHD will discuss options for complaint resolution.

Report a hate crime

In an emergency, please call 9-1-1 or contact UCPD if you are on campus.

To report a hate crime, please contact local law enforcement. At UC Berkeley, the local law enforcement agency is the University of California Police Department (UCPD):

The California Attorney General website provides more about the definition of a hate crime, how to spot hate crimes, information for victims, and more.

If you are the target of a hate/bias incident or hate crime

We understand that experiencing, or witnessing, a hate crime or hate-motivated act can be very difficult and distressing; we encourage you to take care of yourself. If you are affected by a hate crime or hate/bias incident, please consider taking the following actions:

Supportive resources

Mental health resources

Support for survivors of sexual violence

ThePATH to Care Center(link is external) is the dedicated campus office offering confidential advocacy and healing services for anyone who has been impacted directly or indirectly by sexual violence or sexual harassment (SVSH).

For additional information and resources, including counseling and off-campus organizations, please visit the campus Addressing SVSH "Hub" website(link is external).

Requests for flexibility

Several campus offices, including OPHD, can assist you in requesting flexibility in your classes or work.

Academic Accommodations Hub: Should you be grappling with the impacts of this event, we encourage you to explore academic flexibility in consultation with your instructors.

Other support

National advocacy organizations

National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs: The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP) addresses the pervasive problem of violence committed against and within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) and HIV-affected communities.

Southern Poverty Law Center: The Southern Poverty Law Center was founded in 1971 as a small civil rights law firm. Today, SPLC is internationally known for its tolerance education programs, its legal victories against white supremacists and its tracking of hate groups.

National Gay and Lesbian Task Force: The mission of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is to build the grassroots power of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. We do this by training activists, equipping state and local organizations with the skills needed to organize broad-based campaigns to defeat anti-LGBT referenda and advance pro-LGBT legislation, and building the organizational capacity of our movement.

Stop AAPI Hate:Stop AAPI Hate is a U.S.-based coalition dedicated to ending racism and discrimination against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAs & PIs).

Frequently asked questions

What is a hate crime?

A hate crime is a crime motivated, in whole or in part, by the victim's actual or perceived characteristics of the victim. According to the California Attorney General, a person may be the victim of a hate crime if they have been targeted because of your actual or perceived: (1) disability, (2) gender, (3) nationality, (4) race or ethnicity, (5) religion, (6) sexual orientation, and (7) association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics.

What is a hate or bias incident?

According to the California Attorney General, "a hate incident is an action or behavior motivated by hate but which, for one or more reasons, is not a crime.

A hate or bias incident includes non-criminal conduct that is motivated by hatred or bigotry and directed at any individual, residence, house of worship, institution, or business expressly because of the target’s real or perceived race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, pregnancy, physical or mental disability, medical condition (cancer-related or genetic characteristics), ancestry, marital status, age, sexual orientation, citizenship, or service in the uniformed services.

What is hate speech and is it protected by the First Amendment?

According to the UC Berkeley Free Speech website, "the term 'hate speech' does not have a legal definition in the United States, but it often refers to speech that insults or demeans a person or group of people on the basis of attributes such as race, religion, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, disability or gender. While the university condemns speech of this kind, there is no “hate speech” exception to the First Amendment."

Hateful speech has extremely damaging affects on individuals and communities. Everyone in the campus community is urged to uphold our campus Principles of Community by treating others with dignity and respect.

Please visit the UC Berkeley Free Speech website for information and resources regarding free speech and upholding the campus Principles of Community.

Will the University take action?

UC Berkeley takes reports of discrimination and harassment, including hate or bias incidents, very seriously. The Office for the Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination (OPHD) receives reports of harassment and discrimination, provides support to those harmed, and resolving matters either formally or informally. Please contact OPHD for more information.

Are employees required to report hate/bias incidents?

UC employees (except designated Confidential Resources) have obligations to report what you learn about incidents of violence, abuse, neglect, discrimination and harassment, or other conduct that could be a violation of the law and/or University policy.

If you are a Campus Security Authority (CSA), you are required under the Jeanne Clery Act to report alleged crimes using the online Campus Security Authority (CSA) form. You can find more information on the UC Berkeley Clery Division website.

For more information about these reporting requirements, please refer to the Understanding Reporting Obligations page of the campus SVSH hub website.