Photo: Halton Police
The Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) is launching a new anti-hate campaign this week.
The campaign is called #NoHateInHalton.
The HRPS will be teaming with a bunch of Halton school boards and groups for this inaugural campaign, including the Halton District School Board, the Halton Catholic District School Board, Conseil Scolaire Catholique MonAvenir, Conseil Scolaire Viamonde, Crime Stoppers of Halton, and other community stakeholders. This will run in over 180 schools and learning facilities across the region.
In a release, the HRPS touched on the reasons for launching #NoHateInHalton:
“Eliminating all forms of hate in Halton region, and better supporting victims and communities impacted by it, is a key priority for the HRPS and its campaign partners. Of the hate and bias motivated incidents reported across the region last year, 42 per cent directly involved or impacted schools or school aged youth. The #NoHateInHalton campaign is one of many strategies and initiatives that supports the Service’s ongoing commitment to bring anti-hate awareness and education to school-aged youth and the broader community of Halton.”
This year’s campaign will aim to bring attention to the following topics within schools:
- Eliminating hate and bias motivated incidents;
- Encouraging individuals to report an incident that is motivated by hate or bias;
- Building a sense of community within schools across the region;
- Encouraging students and staff to work collaboratively to eliminate hate within the schools and support impacted individuals and groups; and,
- Reducing the stigma that is often associated with victims of hate and bias-motivated incidents and removing any barriers to reporting those incidents.
Posters will be up at learning facilities across the region to heighten awareness of the campaign. Stickers featuring a QR code to Halton Crime Stoppers’ website, where incidents motivated by hate or bias can be reported anonymously, will also be posted in high schools to help reduce any barriers to reporting incidents.
The campaign will run from Monday, November 8th to Friday, November 12th.
Every person has the right to feel safe in our community. Victims of hate or bias motivated crimes are encouraged to contact the Halton Regional Police Service. The following is a list of valuable support services and resources in Halton Region for victims of hate or bias motivated crimes:
