Hatred Turns Out Not To Be Color-Blind

A BLACK MAN IS DOUSED IN GASOLINE AND SET ON fire. A note found nearby reads "one les ((sic)) nigger more to go" and is signed "KKK." It happened in Hillsborough County, Florida, on New Year's Day, and last week three white men were arrested in connection with the attack. It was a fitting backdrop for the FBI's first ever national report on the subject of bias crimes. The study, based on information supplied by law-enforcement agencies in 32 states, found that 4,558 hate-crime incidents were reported in 1991. Racial bias motivated 6 of 10 offenses reported, religious bias 2 of 10, ethnic and sexual-orientation bias 1 of 10 each.

According to the FBI's classifications, blacks are the targets of most bias attacks (36%), followed by whites (19%) and Jews (17%). The bureau's report is far from definitive -- only about 3,000 of 16,000 law-enforcement agencies elected to participate. That may be the survey's most telling statistic, since it suggests that local law enforcement officials need to develop greater sensitivity toward bias offenses. Still, says Arthur Kropp, president of People for the American Way, a liberal lobbying group, the report is important: "It's the first national picture of hate crimes -- and it's an ugly one." The FBI plans to release a more comprehensive report in the spring, as ordered by the Hate Crime Statistics Act of 1990. But these are just numbers. For Florida bias-attack victim Christopher Wilson, only one hate-crime statistic truly matters: burns over 40% of his body.