In Policing Hatred, Jeannine Bell explores the intersection of race and law enforcement in the controversial area of hate crime, calling attention to the thousands of individuals who are attacked each year because of their race, religion, or sexual orientation. This in-depth ethnographic study examines hate crime law from the perspective of those enforcing it, and the social impact of those efforts. Bell exposes the power that police officers have to influence the social environment by showing how they determine whether an incident will be charged as a bias crime. Drawing on her unprecedented access to a police hate crime unit, Bell's work brings to life the stories of female, Black, Latino, and Asian American detectives, in addition to those of their white male counterparts. Policing Hatred also explores the impact of a victim's identity on officers' handling of bias crimes and addresses police treatment of defendants' First Amendment rights. Bell's vivid evidence from the field argues persuasively for vigilant police response to that crimes of all levels, from vandalism to assault, given their devastating cumulative effects on society.
