The number of hate crimes committed in Colorado held relatively steady last year, while groups working to prevent these crimes remain concerned.
Police responded to 106 hate crimes around the state in 2017. More than half of them were racially motivated. The number was flat compared to 2016, but some residents are concerned because the state hasn’t seen the number of hate crimes drop over the last three years.
The Colorado Anti -Defamation League’s Jeremy Shaver says hateful messages continue to spread.
“We’ve seen banners with a white supremacist message being hung over I-25 near Colorado Springs,” said Shaver. “A group gathering in Civic Center Park in Denver just this last weekend holding a banner that had an anti-immigrant message.”
Nationally, hate crimes were up 17 percent last year. A big portion of them was attributed to a rise in anti-Semitic attacks.
