Hate Crime Trends During the Presidencies of Barack Obama and Donald Trump

I examine trends in hate crime incidents in the U.S. during the presidencies of Barack Obama and Donald Trump. In addition, I examine overall hate crime incidents, as well as single-bias motivations for hate crimes such as race/ethnicity, religion, and sexual orientation. Lastly, I test whether there were differences in hate crime trends across the two presidents. My results find that hate crime trends were overall lower during Obama’s presidency and higher in Trump’s. To add on, I conclude that various legislations and the rhetoric used by the former presidents can affect the rate of hate crimes.