Province of B.C. Taking Action To Protect Communities Against Violence And Hate

The Province is providing funding for community organizations to take action against hate-motivated violence in British Columbia.

“We must stand together against a deeply troubling increase in acts of hate in our province,” said Premier David Eby.

“No one here should live in fear because of who they are and no one here should be targeted because of the war in the Middle East. Our government is taking action to keep people safe and protect the places that provide comfort and connection for so many of us.”

It will be offering a specific anti-hate community support fund for organizations impacted by acts of hate including vandalism, while rolling out the racist incident helpline, which will help strategically target further government resources to combat hate.

The new support fund will be provided to organizations such as places of worship, cultural community centres and at-risk groups, including the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, for security equipment, graffiti removal and repairs to damaged property as part of community efforts to respond to hate-motivated crimes.

Eligible organizations will be able to apply for up to $10,000 in funding, with the cash coming from the civil forfeiture grant program, which uses proceeds from unlawful activity and redirects it back to communities.

Information on how organizations can apply will be available when the grant program launches Nov. 28, 2023.

In addition, a new racist incident helpline to be launched in the spring for witnesses or victims of hate to report an incident when they may not feel comfortable contacting the police.

The province will then use data collected through the helpline to inform where and how to deploy additional targeted resources to combat racism.

To learn more, visit Government of British Columbia.