Hate Crimes Reported to Harvard Police Doubled From 2022 to 2023

The number of hate crimes reported to the Harvard University Police Department doubled from 2022 to 2023, and included hate crimes on the basis of religion for the first time in at least two years, according to a report released Tuesday.

The numbers come as part of HUPD’s annual Clery Act security report, whose release is mandated by federal law. In the report, HUPD detailed 10 hate crimes which were reported in 2023 — an increase from the five reported in 2022 and three reported in 2021.

The new numbers come amid rising concerns around antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel. In a May interview, HUPD Chief Victor A. Clay said that the department considerably increased their presence on campus, including at Jewish events, in response to an increase in threats aimed at students.

The hate crimes reported in 2023 included three aggravated assaults motivated by race on public property, one case of larceny motivated by religion, and one case of simple assault motivated by religion. Other reported hate crimes include intimidation and assault on the basis of race, gender, and sexual orientation.

Rabbi Jason B. Rubenstein ’04, the executive director of Harvard Hillel, wrote in a statement that he hopes Harvard affiliates will “recognize the vulnerability of Jewish individuals,” and “protect us not only with their deeds, but with their words.”

He added that Jews “are the targets of more hate crimes than any other identity,” according to a separate FBI database of hate crimes.

“The effects of that hatred are not evenly distributed, but are borne most heavily by vulnerable minorities,” he wrote.

Imam Khalil Abdur-Rashid, the University’s Muslim chaplain, declined to comment for this article.

The number of hate crimes reported to HUPD doubled from 2022 to 2023. By Julian J. Giordano

HUPD spokesperson Steven G. Catalano also did not respond to a request for comment on the increase in hate crimes on campus.

The overall crime committed on campus also dramatically increased in 2023. According to the report, total crime rose 55 percent — from 208 incidents in 2022 to 323 in 2023.

In 2023, there were three arrests by HUPD officers for incidents of drug law and weapons law violations. The Clery Act, which requires schools that receive federal funding to disclose certain crime-related data, only mandates that HUPD release arrest numbers for drug law, weapons law, and liquor law violations.

The number of aggravated assaults jumped from 20 in 2022 to 59 in 2023. Reports of robberies increased nearly sixfold, from 5 in 2022 to 28 in 2023.

Incidents of motor vehicle theft — including scooter theft — and domestic violence roughly doubled from 2022 to 2023. Reports of non consensual fondling, stalking and burglary all decreased in 2023.

—Staff writer Sally E. Edwards can be reached at sally.edwards@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @sallyedwards04 or on Threads @sally_edwards06.

—Staff writer Asher J. Montgomery can be reached at asher.montgomery@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @asherjmont or on Threads @asher_montgomery.