US Attorney Hosts United Against Hate Event in Gary, Indiana

HAMMOND, IN– Last week, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Indiana partnered with the Gary Indiana Police Department and, hosted its first “United Against Hate” Community Outreach Event, bringing together local and federal law enforcement and the community to discuss effective strategies to prevent, report, and respond to hate crimes and incidents.

“United Against Hate” is a nationwide Department of Justice initiative to combat unlawful acts of hate. “We are excited to bring this initiative to the Northern District of Indiana and thankful to our law enforcement partners and community leaders for joining us in this necessary step to help provide education on combating hate and protecting civil rights,” said United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.

The event, held Thursday, September 14, 2023, at the New Friendship Baptist Church in Gary, Indiana, featured remarks by U.S. Attorney Johnson and Gary Chief of Police, Anthony Titus, as well as presentations from Assistant U.S. Attorneys, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and a representative from the Department of Justice’s Community Relations Service (CRS) on the topics of identifying hate crimes and incidents, the importance of reporting, and resources available to help communities dealing with such crimes. 

“Combating hate crimes and bias incidents is one of the top priorities of the Department of Justice and our office,” said U.S. Attorney Johnson. “It is very fitting to be discussing strategies to tackle these issues on this day and in this forum, as September 15th marks the 60^th anniversary of the bombing of the 16^th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama by members of the KKK.  Addressing and defending against hate crimes requires all of us to be attentive and vigilant.” 

As part of its United Against Hate Program, the U.S. Attorney’s Office hopes to engage with diverse communities across the District to further education and prevention efforts and encourage reporting of hate crimes, bias incidents, and discrimination to local and federal authorities. By convening community forums and providing education about civil rights statutes and incident reporting mechanisms, the goal is to build relationships and root out hate in the district. 

Community Organizations or Leaders that wish to partner with the United States Attorney’s office to explore holding such an event in their community should contact the District via the following link: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndin/northern-district-indiana-us-attorney-speakers-bureau. 

Finally, if you believe you are the victim of a hate crime or have witnessed a hate crime, immediately report the crime to your state or local police by dialing 9-1-1, then quickly report the incident to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). You can report to the FBI online at tips.FBI.gov or by  calling 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324). If you believe a bias incident or act of discrimination may not involve a hate crime, you should still report such incident to the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division at civilrights.justice.gov or by contacting the Civil Rights Coordinator in the Civil Division at the U.S. Attorney’s Office.