One Step Forward, Two Steps Backward? Difficulties and Dilemmas With Connecting Hate Crime Policy and Research

Abstract

This article will assess the difficulties and misunderstandings that prevent hate crime academics and practitioners from working together more productively. It will be argued that many of these problems stem from the different occupational cultures across the two spheres, which can generate varying expectations, values, and practices that exacerbate problems in working relationships. Some of these difficulties relate to differing understandings of what hate crime actually is and how to counter it. The article suggests that by gaining in-depth knowledge of each other’s working methods and outputs, perhaps by being involved in formal and informal joint projects that necessitate flexibility and the development of shared approaches, academics and practitioners can devise more nuanced interventions that deal with the harms of hate crime more effectively.