Michigan had the highest number of hate incidents among states in the Midwest in the 10 days following the Nov. 8 election, according to a new report released this week, according to the Detroit Free Press.
There were at least 40 incidents involving bias against African Americans, Latinos, immigrants, Jews, Muslims, LGBT, and others in Michigan in the period following the contentious election, 18 of them involving suspects who mentioned Donald Trump, according to a report by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
The center, which monitors extremism and bigotry, said there were 867 hate incidents nationally post-election. Michigan had the sixth-highest number of hate incidents during that time period, after California, which had 99, New York, 69, Texas, 57, Washington state, 48, and Massachusetts, 42.
“Many harassers invoked Trump’s name during assaults, making it clear that the outbreak of hate stemmed in large part from his electoral success,” said the report. “People have experienced harassment at school, at work, at home, on the street, in public transportation, in their cars, in grocery stores and other places of business, and in their houses of worship. They most often have received messages of hate and intolerance through graffiti and verbal harassment, although a small number also have reported violent physical interactions.”
The report only includes those incidents the center was made aware of and doesn’t include some others that have been reported to local authorities or state officials. The director of the state Department of Civil Rights has said their department saw a huge spike in reported hate crimes in the 10 days after the election,
Some of the 40 incidents in Michigan tracked by the Southern Poverty Law Center include:
• On Nov. 16, a Latino immigrant was targeted at a Panera Bread restaurant in Troy by a suspect making references to Trump.
• On Nov. 10 at Clarkston Junior High School, there was a Nazi swastika aimed at an African American. There were also Nazi swastikas painted in incidents in Albion, Wyandotte and Ann Arbor, among other municipalities.
• On Nov. 9, an 18-year-old female employee in Kalamazoo who is African American was cursed and spat on at by a white male customer, who said “Donald Trump is president.” The man then called her a “black” followed by a derogatory word, said the report. There were also anti-black incidents against African Americans by suspects making references to Trump in a Walmart parking lot in Marquette, on public transportation in Okemos, at a business in Flint Township, and on the street in New Baltimore, among other places.
Twelves of the victims in the 40 incidents were African American, at least four were Latino, four were Muslim, and seven incidents were anti-immigrant in tone.
The spike in hate crimes and incidents in Michigan have prompted the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan and the head of the Detroit FBI office to issue a statement last week saying they will prosecute hate attacks.
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