FBI Reports Increase in Hate Crimes in 2015

The report comes on the heels of a contentious presidential election that led to protests and rioting.

The FBI’s annual crime report showed a 6.8 percent increase in hate crimes in the U.S. in 2015.

The report included 5,859 hate crime incidents in total, up from 5,479 reported in 2014.

The demographic targeted the most compared to 2014 was Muslims, who experienced a 67 percent increase in hate crimes, according to CNN.

The majority of so-called single bias hate crimes were motivated by racial, ethnic and/or ancestry bias.

To be included in the report, a criminal offense must be reported to police against a “person or property motivated in whole or in part by an offender’s bias against a race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender, or gender identity.”

RELATED: Colo. Students Expelled for Violent Hate Group Posts

Other groups that saw an increase in hate crime victimization included Jewish people (nine percent increase from 2014), African-Americans (eight percent increase) and members of the LGBT community (five percent increase).

The Southern Poverty Law Center has tracked 892 hate groups currently operating in the United States.

President-elect Donald Trump has called for unity in the country since his Election Day victory.

Read Next: Racism Reported on Several Campuses Following Trump Victory

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