NORTH Yorkshire Police and the region’s Crime Commissioner are backing a new nationwide hate crime awareness campaign.

The government has launched the initiative to increase awareness and understanding of what constitutes a hate crime.

The campaign has been developed in consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the Independent Advisory Group on Hate Crime and other organisations.

It aims to help the public understand hate crime, particularly offences which often people do not recognise as criminal, such as some forms of online and verbal abuse.

This includes educating perpetrators who have been motivated by hostility towards things such as race, religion and sexual orientation, that they have committed a hate crime.

The strapline of the campaign is spreading the message that ‘It’s not just offensive. It’s an offence.’

Superintendent Mark Khan, North Yorkshire Police’s lead for hate crime, said: “Our message is clear – to target hate at a person because of their race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or gender is a crime.

“It can devastate lives and make people change their behaviour just because of what they are.

“We’re proud to support this national campaign which gives clear examples of hate crime and sends a message that not only is this behaviour unacceptable, it is a criminal offence.

“This is just one part of the ongoing work by North Yorkshire Police to tackle hate crime to ensure this appalling behaviour is stamped out in our county.

‘It’s important for people to report hate incidents to us or a third party, such as Supporting Victims.

“We take hate speech and hate incidents seriously because by dealing with the early signs of prejudice we prevent escalation to more serious offences.”

The campaign launched with adverts running online, on social media and posters to be displayed across the country.

Each video or poster features a different offender, represented by an e-fit, and a hate crime taking place.

These include racist graffiti being sprayed on the shop of a foreign couple, a Muslim woman being aggressively shouted at to remove her headscarf and a disabled man being verbally abused on a bus.

Julia Mulligan, North Yorkshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, said: “Having spoken to many victims of hate crime, I know the shattering impact it can have. To be targeted because of who you are is absolutely unacceptable.”