According to Statistics Canada, hate crimes reported to the police have increased annually from 2018 to 2023 (Statistics Canada, 2024a). Due to under-reporting, the actual number of hate crime incidents is estimated to be even higher (Department of Justice, 2022; Maini and Ahmed, n.d.; Statistics Canada, 2001, p. 13; Toronto Police Services, 2024, p. 8). Online hate targeting marginalized populations, including racialized and 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, has also risen in recent years (Abreu & Kenny, 2017; Cosma et al., 2023; Mkhize et al., 2020; Royal Canadian Mounted Police, 2023).
We recognize the need for a reporting mechanism to track anti-2SLGBTQIA+ and transphobic online hate through community-based initiatives that do not engage with the police. It is within this context that the Ontario Digital Literacy and Access Network (ODLAN) and Wisdom2Action Consulting Ltd., (W2A) partnered to conduct this study on the feasibility of developing a community-based reporting tool to track anti-2SLGBTQIA+ online hate.
In the spirit of reconciliation, Wisdom2Action acknowledges the land on which it was originally established as the traditional and unceded territory of the M’ikmaq, known as Mi’kmak’i (Nova Scotia). Our team is spread across Turtle Island (Canada) on the treaty lands of many First Nations. We recognize the people and the land in this way as part of our commitment to anti-oppression and decolonization. We are all treaty people.
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