Hate crimes can be directed at groups of people and groups can become victims in these situations.
Groups as direct victims
In a narrower sense, hate crimes can be directed at specific sub-groups of a bigger group sharing a common characteristic, although generally these should be considered to be direct victims.
example If the office of an organization working with human rights is attacked due to the perpetrator’s bias towards the work of the organization, it could be considered to be a hate crime directed at a group – members of the organization.
example Where a LGBT+ community center is attacked and the perpetrators expressed their hatred towards the whole LGBT+ community, rather than the specific center.
Effects on the communities
Due to the severity of hate crimes, the wider community sharing the same characteristic as the victim may feel frightened and intimidated. The members of communities affected by hate crimes may feel at risk of future attacks and thus also feel like the victims themselves, although they have not been directly affected by the hate crime and thus don’t have the status of a victim.
It is particularly important that state authorities take proper action, not only to investigate hate crimes, but to also ensure that members of communities feel safe and trust the authorities.
example The Jewish community closes all their establishments for a few months due to their fear that these establishments are going to be attacked again.