NEWARK, NJ—The FBI Newark is launching an unconventional hate crime awareness campaign encouraging the community to report any incidents to the FBI. Local communities will see advertisements that read: “Bottom line: Silence Won’t Solve a Hate Crime. Report it.” The ads will run throughout the state of New Jersey on highway digital billboards, NJ Transit buses, Facebook, pizza boxes, as well as plane banners flying along the Jersey Shore during Labor Day weekend.

“We have seen a steady rise in hate crimes over the last few years in New Jersey, as well as many other parts of the country. We know it’s an underreported crime for many reasons. People may fear coming forward, they may not think what happened to them was a hate crime, or they don’t believe anyone will care. We’re using this campaign to encourage anyone who has been a victim of those crimes to report it so we can solve it, and hold the offenders accountable,” said James F. Dennehy, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Newark FBI.

Hate crimes are the highest priority in the FBI’s civil rights program because of the devastating impact they have on individuals, families, and communities. A hate crime is a traditional offense like murder, arson, or vandalism with an added element of hate, defined as bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity. Hate itself is not a crime – the FBI is mindful of protecting freedom of speech and other civil liberties. Hate crimes are not only an attack on the victim – they are meant to threaten and intimidate an entire community.

FBI Newark works closely with our local, state, tribal, and federal law enforcement partners in many hate crime investigations. To learn more go to Hate Crime — FBI. If you believe you are a victim or a witness of a hate crime, we encourage you to report it to the FBI by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or online at https://tips.fbi.gov/.