What Do I Do When I Witness Racism or a Hate Crime?

When you witness racism in the street, your workplace, or at school, it can be hard to know what to do and who to talk to about it. Calling out racist behaviour is important, as is helping someone in need, but so is making sure you remain safe in a situation. This super quick list will help you know who to go to when you see it, and how to support someone who is experiencing it. 

Quick Steps to Intervening in Racism or Hate Crime

1. Assess the situation for safety for you and the person being harassed
2. If the perpetrator is being violent, you should put your safety first. If you think you or the person being harassed could be in physical danger, immediately call the police
3. If you feel it is safe to intervene, go to the person being harassed and try to remove them
4. Ensure that they are OK, and try to get them to safer space away from the harassment
5. Don’t get aggressive towards the perpetrator as this could make the situation worse
6. Report what you saw to the police if it was in a public space
7. If it was work, go to a manager or if that’s not possible, go to HR
8. If it was at school, report it to a teacher that you trust
9. If the person being harassed doesn’t want to take it further after you have reported it and they have been spoken to, then you shouldn’t push them to
10. Take care of yourself after the incident, and seek additional emotional support if you feel you need it. 

You can find out everything you need to know about the #StopAsianHate movement on our hub by clicking below. 

Contacts and Further Support

End the Virus of Racism

An organisation set up in the wake of the rising tide of hate crimes and racist abuse towards ESEA during the Coronavirus pandemic 

Ditch the Label 

If you see racist abuse online, specifically within social media spaces, you can report it to us, and we will get it removed. 

Stop-Hate UK

They gather reports online and you can report any hate crime or racist incident to them.

CST 

This is where you can report specific instance of anti-semitism, and is an organisation designed to protect Jewish communities. 

Tell MAMA 

With MAMA, you can report hate crime and racism that is specifically anti-muslim.

You can also report incidents via the True Vision website here report-it.org.uk

To report an incident to the police by phone, call 101.

Relay UK – if you can’t hear or speak on the phone, you can type what you want to say: 18001 then 101

You can use Relay UK with an app or a textphone. There’s no extra charge to use it. Find out how to use Relay UK on the Relay UK website.

If it’s an emergency, where you feel you or someone else is in immediate danger from harm,  you should always call 999.

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