ABSTRACT
The previous chapter served to illustrate the contentious nature of hate crime as a political, legal and scholarly arena. Clearly, there are many commentators for whom the answer is simple – abandon the concept altogether. Of course, this would resolve many of the problems that we have identified in an instant, and having read the debates portrayed in the previous chapter you may well have concluded that to do so is the only sensible course of action. I do not believe, however, that we should abandon the concept, nor give up on our attempts to make life better for those who are the victims or potential victims of expressions of hate. Much has been achieved, and much more can be achieved, but if we are to persist with hate crime as a distinct category of crime, then we face a number of critical issues that still need to be addressed. In this chapter, then, I shall touch upon what I believe to be some of the key issues facing those of us who wish to further the hate crime agenda. Somewhat ironically, the process of identifying which ‘critical issues’ to
discuss here is somewhat reflective of one of the key criticisms of hate crime itself, namely that selective decisions necessarily have to be made about what to include and what to omit. In many respects I find myself in a ‘no-win’ situation at the outset of this chapter – by selecting some issues over others I suspect that I will inevitably cause consternation amongst some readers for whom I will have left out issues close to their heart. But, if I try to include all of the seemingly infinite number of issues that might possibly and reasonably be considered ‘critical’ within our subject area, then they will, for our purposes, cease to be ‘critical’. After all, if everything is a priority, then nothing is. With this in mind, I hope you’ll forgive and understand my choices in this chapter, and be reassured that I do not limit my personal concerns just to the issues raised here. Necessity (and the prospect of a book that otherwise might not ever end) however, forces prioritisation.
