I am deeply concerned about the problem of hate crime in the United States. It is a concern shared by the President and by Americans throughout the country. We as a nation have largely overcome a difficult chapter in our history, and we enjoy an unparalleled level of freedom from hatred and bigotry. But pockets of bias-related violence and intimidation remain and threaten the progress we have made.
Hate crime has no place in civilized society.
The primary responsibility for hate crime investigation begins with dedicated state and local law enforcement officials. In some communities, these officials may need additional training to develop the specialized skills necessary for the identification, reporting, investigation and prosecution of hate crimes. As part of a comprehensive initiative by the Department of Justice to address hate crime, I asked the Community Relations Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Hate Crimes Unit to work with Federal, State and local law enforcement agencies to develop a model hate crime training curriculum. I wanted to identify the best policies, procedures, practices, techniques and materials available to train law enforcement officers, and create model curricula with an equitable balance of instruction on law enforcement, victim assistance and community relations. To this end we joined with the National Association of Attorneys General, the International Association of Directors of Law Enforcement Standards and Training, the Department of Treasury's Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, the Department of Justice's Office for Victims of Crime, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation's National Training Academy and Uniform Crime Reporting Division.