Hate crimes are criminal acts motivated by prejudice towards a victim's race, color, religion, or national origin. Bias incidents refer to non-criminal actions that are motivated by prejudice. This live-streamed discussion of hate crime and bias incidents in State College and Pennsylvania will focus on four issues:

1) How much hate crime is there? How do we know? Can we trust the numbers? Can we improve our information about the extent of hate crime?
2) Who are the victims of hate crime? Are some groups more likely to be victims?
3) Should the definition of hate crime in Pennsylvania be expanded to include other groups? Which groups should be included?
4) How can we reduce hate crime?

Panelists

Seria Chatters, Director of Equity and Inclusivity
State College Area School District

John Gardner, Chief of Police
State College Police Department

Barry Ruback, Penn State Professor of Criminology and Sociology
Former President of Congregation Brit Shalom

Charima Young, Director of Local Government and Community Relations
Penn State University.