False police reports cause "real harm"

As African-Americans and LGBT people face increasing violence, police and activists warn that false witnessing hatred is doing real damage.

Although such hoaxes are rare, they say, everyone diverts resources from real victims, casts doubt on legitimate attacks and provides material to those who would like to minimize the threat of hatred in the United States.

"Dummy police reports are causing real damage," Chicago police superintendent Eddie Johnson told reporters on Thursday.

The actor "Empire" Jussie Smollett, who is black and homosexual, is accused of having paid two men to attack him last month in a so-called police ploy, as he was unhappy with his salary.

Smollett, 36, is now charged with disorderly conduct, a class 4 crime punishable by up to three years in prison.

NAACP spokesman Malik Russell said the allegations against Smollett should not be used as a "smokescreen" to cover up real racism in the United States.

"We do not want it to be an opportunity for people who support racism to put pressure on this problem," Russell told USA Today. "The problems that affect communities of color are not always taken seriously."

Eugene O Donnell is a former police officer and attorney from New York City. He warned that a false statement could "dramatically undermine the next legitimate victim".

"The danger in a case like this is that people who think hate crimes are a fantasy will see this and think it's a representative incident," he said. said O Donnell.

The reality, he said, is that "there are many more hate crimes in the country than ever before in the hands of a police officer".

Peter Scharf, a criminologist at Louisiana State University, warned that the Smollett controversy could discourage the real victims from reporting to the police.

"Some cases will never be reported because you fear being exposed and punished," Scharf said, "people are actually victims of hate crimes and they are silent."

Reports of violence against African Americans and LGBT people have increased, according to the FBI.

Reports of hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation increased by 5% in 2017, the last year for which FBI data are available. Reports of hate crimes against blacks increased by 16%.

The National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs has counted 52 hate-related homicides against people who identify as LGBTQ in 2017, the highest number in a single year. Sixty percent of the victims were black.

Misrepresentations of serious crimes are rare, but there have been notable examples.

Rolling Stone magazine published an article in 2014 detailing allegations of gang rape by a freshman from the University of Virginia in a fraternity home.

Other media organizations followed but found problems with the magazine's claims. Charlottesville police investigated and found no evidence of sexual assault. Rolling Stone is excused and retracted the article.

In 2006, a black student from the Central University of North Carolina charged with raping three white members of the Duke University Men 's Lacrosse Team during the summer break. an evening where she worked as a stripper. Players have been charged with kidnapping, rape and sexual assault.

The players had alibis, the accuser had changed his story several times, another party stripper had rejected his accusations and the charges had finally been withdrawn. Durham District Attorney Mike Nifong was finally removed from his position and struck off the bar for allegedly withholding evidence that would have acquitted the players.

Smollett She told the police that two masked men had shouted racist and homophobic slurs, hit her, slung a rope around her neck and poured her with bleach.

Police said he had paid $ 3,500 to two Nigerian brothers to stage the attack and told them to say "MAGA" for "Make America Great Again," a slogan popularized by President Donald Trump.

Johnson, the superintendent of the Chicago police, said he was concerned about the increased skepticism sparked by hate reports.

"I'm left hanging my head and asking:" Why? " said Johnson, who is black. "Why would anyone, especially an African American man, use the symbolism of a noose to make false accusations?"

Civil rights groups say that false information undermines their efforts to defend real victims.

"It is unfortunate that someone, particularly someone who has such a large platform, falsifies part of a history of hate violence," said the anti-violence project of the New York City in a statement. "Nevertheless, the reality is that far too many survivors do not believe in it and do not do justice to the violence they suffer."

Chad Griffin, president of the Human Rights Campaign, described the allegations against Smollett as "both devastating and frustrating."

"But I want to ask all those who feel angry, hurt and disappointed to channel this into productive activism," he tweeted, "because there are thousands of hate victims each year who have need our help. "

Contribution: Alia E. Dastagir, United States TODAY & # 39; HUI

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