Greater Manchester stands together against hate

We continue to stand together against hatred and prejudice, says Greater Manchester’s Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioner.

Speaking on the eve of International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Tony Lloyd has praised the work going on across Greater Manchester to tackle hate crime, and urges communities to continue on that journey to eradicate it from society.

Mr Lloyd said: “Racism can never be justified or explained away - it is a hate crime, pure and simple.

Nobody should ever feel in fear of being discriminated against due to the colour of their skin.

“Racism and hatred of any kind is not tolerated in Greater Manchester. We are a multi-cultural community that welcomes and celebrates our diversity, bringing local people together to share and learn about each other’s cultures and backgrounds.”

Mr Lloyd added: “We have made great progress on our journey to ending hate crime, and we must keep up the pace,.

“Sadly some people in our community are still subjected to hatred and abuse, simply because of who they are. By continuing to shine a light on this issue, together we can end hate crime.”

If you or someone you know has been a victim of hate crime please report it to police on 101 or visit www.letsendhatecrime.com to find out how to report online.

Between 1 April and 31 December 2016, 5,641 hate crimes or incidents were reported to GMP, of these, 4,320 were racially motivated.