National Hate Crime Awareness Week 11-18th October 2014

Organised by 17-24-30 in partnership with Stop Hate UK

Dear friends,

It is with great pleasure that I write to inform you of our plans for this year's National Hate Crime Awareness Week which will take place between the 11th to 18th October 2014.

We will start the week with a special launch event at St Paul's Cathedral 6.30pm on Saturday 11th October.

Speakers include:

Mark Healey 17-14-30 No To Hate Crime Campaign
Rose Simkins Stop Hate UK
Sylvia Lancaster S.O.P.H.I.E. Lancaster Foundation

Sylvia Lancaster will light the National Candle of Hope and Remembrance, which will then stay burning in St Paul's Cathedral for the duration of the week in front of the painting The Light of the World.

A retiring collection will be made in aid of the
S.O.P.H.I.E. Lancaster Foundation

Get your FREE tickets now through Eventbrite (click here)

During the week we are calling on all local authorities, police services and their partners along with key stakeholders within our communities to work with us to raise awareness of hate crime and promote local initiatives to prevent it.

Why is this important? because people are still facing attacks on a daily basis because of who they are. Disabled people are being verbally abused whilst using public transport, Trans people are being attacked on our streets, People of faith are being targeted because of their beliefs, whilst others are targeted because of the colour of their skin, and Lesbians, bisexuals and gay men are still being subject to abuse. It is time for all of this abuse and harassment to stop - which is why we need your help.

Some London Boroughs are using the week to promote their online hate crime reporting forms. Some are holding Hate Crime Reporting Stalls in their local libraries whilst others are organising talks about hate crime and meetings to bring people together to discuss how to tackle hate crime within their local communities.

Saturday 18th October is this year's International Day of Hope and Remembrance for those affected by Hate Crime and a series of solidarity vigils will be taking place around the UK and abroad. In the UK Solidarity Vigils against Hate Crime have taken place in Brighton, Ipswich, Kettering, London, Milton Keynes, Norfolk, Norwich, Plymouth, Reading and Wellingborough. We hope more will take place this year!

What is going on in your area? We would love to know, so if you have the responsibility for the hate crime remit please get in contact and tell us what services are available in your area. If your organising a hate crime awareness event tell us about it and we will help you promote it through our social media networks.

And if nothing is happening in your area - now is the time to raise this with your local authorities as they have a statutory duty to have a plan in place to tackle crime - and that includes hate crime! Again - let us know so we can support you.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Mark and Rose

P.S. Please share what we are doing via your social networking profiles as widely as possible, we can only get the word out to the widest number of people with your support.

Mark Healey 17-24-30 No to Hate Crime Campaign

Rose Simkins Stop Hate UK

Whatever your doing to tackle hate crime tell us about it.

We want to help promote local events and initiatives through our social networking profiles.

Send details to info@17-24-30.org and info@stophateuk.org

Don't miss this special launch event at St Paul's Cathedral on the 11th October.

Book your FREE tickets via our EVENTbrite page now (Click here).

In March 2012 the Government released it's Hate Crime Action Plan.

An update was issued in May 2014.

Download the Government's "Challenge It, Report It, Stop It plan" and update via this link.

Follow this link to the 17-24-30 No to Hate Crime Facebook Events Page
Follow this link to the Sop Hate UK Hate Crime Awareness Week Events Page

Forward

Notes:

17-24-30 No to Hate Crime Campaign was set up by Mark Healey and Ryan Parkins in April 2009 to mark the 10th anniversary of the London Nail Bomb attacks on Brixton, Brick Lane and Soho. 17-24-30 represents the dates of the three bomb attacks and aim to encourage the black, Asian and gay communities to work closer together to tackle all forms of hate crime.

Stop Hate UK is one of the leading national organisations working to challenge all forms of hate crime and discrimination, based on any aspect of an individual's identity. Stop Hate provides independent, confidential and accessible reporting and support for victims, witnesses and third parties.

Stop Hate UK offer a range of other services, including training, education and consultancy. Stop Hate UK's core activities also include awareness-raising, campaigning and delivering projects on a variety of issues relevant to hate crime and equality.

This is the third National Hate Crime Awareness Week. The first week was organised by Mark Healey 17-24-30 No to Hate Crime Campaign in October 2012.

The National Candle of Hope and Remembrance was first lit by Peggy and Carolyn Moore in October 2012 in memory of their son/brother Nick Moore who was killed along with Andrea Dykes and John Light during the nail bomb attack on the Admiral Duncan that took place on the 30th April 1999. The nail bomb was one of three nail bomb attacks targeted against the black community of Brixton (17th April), the Asian community of Brick Lane (24th April) and the gay community of Soho (30th April).

Last year the National Candle of Hope and Remembrance was lit by Jenny Baynham, the sister of Ian Baynham who was homophobically abused and beaten in Trafalgar Square. He later died from the injuries he sustained and 17-24-30 No to Hate Crime Campaign organised the first London Vigil against Hate Crime on the 30th Oct 2009 - it was attended by over 10,000 people and became the largest anti-hate crime gathering in recent history.

Whilst the London Vigil against Hate Crime has not taken place since October 2012, 17-24-30 No to Hate Crime Campaign has focused it's limited resources on organising the April Acts of Remembrance to mark the anniversaries of the London Nail Bomb attacks and the National Hate Crime Awareness Week each October.

The agreed objectives of the National Hate Crime Awareness Week this year are:

1) Raise as much awareness of hate crime as possible by encouraging local authorities, their partners and key stakeholders in the community to organise a wide range of awareness raising events and campaigns to promote local services and hate crime initiatives.

2) To develop a National Hate Crime Calendar to assist the promotion of hate crime events and activities within the UK. This will be located on the Stop Hate UK website.

3) To encourage and facilitate networking between those tackling hate crime within the UK and abroad.

4) To secure funding for future National Hate Crime Awareness Weeks and a National Hate Crime Administrator post, to help facilitate future weeks. This post will be based with Stop Hate UK.

5) To recruit a team of people to oversee plans for National Hate Crime Awareness Week 2015, to develop and promote future weeks so that they reach a much wider audience.

Working in partnership 17-24-30 No to Hate Crime Campaign and Stop Hate UK hope to broaden the impact of the National Hate Crime Awareness Week across the UK.

Here is the National Hate Crime Awareness Week Logo which we welcome you to use if you are organising and promoting local hate crime raising events during the week. Please mention that the week is organised by 17-24-30 No To Hate Crime Campaign and Stop Hate UK.