Discrimination and hate crimes against rainbow people

Hate crimes, hate speech and discrimination are more than the average directed at rainbow people, that is persons belonging to a sexual minority or gender minority or both.

A hate crime refers to an offence that is motivated by the victim’s actual or assumed belonging to a minority. Hate can be motivated by the victim’s sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.

Hate speech is communication that spreads or incites hatred against a person or a population group due to personal reasons. Hate speech can be a crime if it fulfils the essential elements of an offence and if there is an underlying prejudice against any population.

Hate speech can include defamation, unlawful threat, and ethnic agitation. Suspected crimes against sexual minorities and gender minorities are often verbal abuse and assault. A hate crime motive is mentioned in the Criminal Code of Finland as a ground for a harsher sentence to be imposed.

Discrimination due to sexual orientation and family relationships is prohibited in the Non-discrimination Act. Discrimination due to gender, gender identity and gender expression is prohibited in the Equality Act. The prohibition also includes discrimination based on the fact that a person’s physical characteristics that define gender are not unambiguously female or male.

People belonging to gender minorities and sexual minorities can also be exposed to structural violence due to the society’s social norms. This can, for example, appear as physical and emotional domestic violence, school violence and street violence.

Children and young people who do not meet the society’s gender norms run a higher risk than the average of being exposed to violence, discrimination and being rejected by their parents.

Ask for support and report the offence

A lot of the crimes against rainbow people remain hidden. The reason to this might be that the victim, due to shame, does not dare to report the crime, or is afraid that the crime will not be taken seriously. Experiences of disrespectful treatment and feelings of guilt can also make it harder to make a report.

It is important that all victims of crime dare to report the crime to the police. Everyone is entitled to this, a crime is never the victim’s fault.

Seta’s homepages have good instructions on how to report hate crimes and hate speech as well as discrimination and harassment to the police and how to inform other relevant parties: Seta.fi: Hate crimes and hate speech

RIKU offers advice and practical support in the criminal process

Everyone is welcome to the Victim Support Finland’s services, regardless of the gender identity, gender expression or sexual orientation.

If you hesitate to report an offence RIKU can offer you support and you can ask for a support person who, for example, can help you with the report or the hearing.

RIKU’s equality competence has been improved by education and internal structures in the organization. If you are a client at RIKU and would like to give feedback about our work, you can leave your feedback anonymously via the feedback form. Give feedback about RIKU’s work.

Other support services: Seta.fi: Support for hate crime victims and perpetrators

Sources: Poliisin tietoon tullut viharikollisuus Suomessa 2020, Kouluterveyskysely, Oikeusministeriön esite viharikoksista sateenkaari-ihmisille 2021, Seta: Viharikokset ja vihapuhe, Setan koulutus RIKUn henkilöstölle 6/2020