About this app
Hate crime is rampant in today’s world. The latest statistics from the FBI state that in 2016, there were 6,121 reported instances of hate crime. However, these are just the crimes that are reported. What about the hate crimes that go unreported? In fact, CNN reports that a whopping 54% of hate crime cases go unreported. In addition, a special report by the Department of Justice, United States, shows that in 2016, an average of 210,000 people are victims of hate crime. So why do these hundreds of thousands of hate crime victims never report their hate crime? Several victims believe that authorities will not handle the situation effectively or that law enforcement would not want to get involved. Several others fear for their safety because they do not want the reporting of a hate crime to result in retaliation from attackers. Victims need a safe place where they are not afraid to report hate crimes, and get justice for the constant persecution that they face every day, simply because of who they are, what they believe in and who they chose to worship. Currently, there is no single place that victims can go that provides five different major features to combat hate crime and the chronic underreporting of it. There is no single app in the market that covers the extensive set of prejudice based crime categories and has a vast range of features in one place, like “Stop Hate! Advocate.” does.
My app, “Stop Hate! Advocate.” has numerous features. First, it allows users to report hate crimes anonymously. Team Shanti takes our users’ choice to be anonymous very seriously, so no personal information is used for this feature of the app. Users must enter specific details about the incident. First they must enter the date and time when the incident of hate crime occurred, followed by the location where the hate crime incident occurred. Users must also specify the type of hate crime (Ex: Prejudice Based on Race), as well as the specific type of incident (Ex: Verbal Threats). Lastly, users provide a detailed description of the incident. This information is used to provide our user base with an interactive map, where they can view hate crime details in a given area. This interactive map is the second feature in “Stop Hate! Advocate.” Users can view hate crimes in their area, indicated by markers on an interactive map. When users click on these markers, they can view more detailed information about the hate crime. This allows users to see how safe an area is. The third feature, “Know Your Rights”, allows users to view comprehensive information about hate crime laws in their state. This comprehensive information about hate crime laws is addressed in four separate sections. The first section addresses if there is a hate crime law in the state selected. The second section details the classes of people that are protected from hate crime, under this law. The third section details what conduct is prohibited by the hate crime law. The last section addresses if civil action based on the hate crime is legal or not. The fourth feature of the app is that it connects victims seeking help to volunteers and experts. The app allows users to filter volunteers and experts by their location and allows them to contact these volunteers or experts by calling, texting or emailing. If a user wants to get in touch with a volunteer anonymously, there is an anonymous feature to the app. Not only does “Stop Hate! Advocate.” encourage victims to come forward and report hate crimes, but it also educates authorities on how to react appropriately to reports of hate crime. If you are an authority in your community that has just experienced hate crime, the app provides resources on how to react appropriately to hate crime. Additional features include an “About the App” page, a “Help” page, and a “Donate” page. The “Donate” page includes contact information for users/donors who would like to donate to Team Shanti to aid our social cause.
