Race hate crime against police officers in London rose by more than 50% in two years, new figures have revealed. A total of 667 police officers were victims of racist or religious hate crimes in 2016/17, up from 428 in 2014/15, a BBC Freedom of Information request has shown. The Metropolitan Police Federation said the 56% increase was “abhorrent”.
The Met Police said it was committed to prosecuting those that abuse its officers in this manner. A total of 4,215 officers employed by the Met Police are black or minority ethnic, making up 13.4% of the force, compared to 40% of the capital’s population overall. Leroy Logan MBE, a former superintendent and founding member of the Metropolitan Black Police Association, said he was “saddened” by the findings. “We’re talking about things that happened 20, 30 years ago but are coming back,” he said. Mr Logan said he experienced racism as a police officer, both inside the police force and on the streets. “When I was a constable, I’d get it internally and externally, especially from youngsters,” he said. “One time I was in an estate in Islington and I heard someone shout the n-word from the balcony. I think unfortunately we are not seeing public attitudes improving today.”
As well as the 667 police officers, 54 civilian police staff were victims of hate crime in 2016/17, bringing the total to almost two offences each day last year. Offences ranged from harassment to racially or religiously aggravated grievous bodily harm but also included non-violent offences, which highlighted “the welcome rise in victims willing to report hate crime to the police,” the force said.
Source: http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-london-41319592
