As the City of Santa Monica observed United Against Hate Week, community organizers said they look to bring the initiative to Santa Monica College – which has seen a 250% increase in reported hate crimes over the last two years.
The Santa Monica City Council issued a proclamation observing United Against Hate Week from Oct. 18-24 during its Oct. 14 meeting. The city joined Los Angeles County and communities across the country in an annual push to lower hate crimes in America.
Santa Monica Mayor Caroline Torosis read the proclamation, and Santa Monica Bay Area Human Relations Council interim director Erika Bell provided additional information. Bell also serves as the leadership chair on the Santa Monica-Malibu Council of PTAs.
Data from the U.S. Justice Department shows hate crimes in America have doubled since 2015. Race-based hate crimes accounted for 55% of all hate crimes in the country last year, followed by religion-based and sexual orientation-based hate crimes.
Of the 19 crimes reported on the Santa Monica College campus in 2025, seven were labeled hate crimes. These numbers reflect a 75% increase in on-campus hate crimes from 2024 and a 250% increase from 2023, when two religion-based incidents were reported. Santa Monica College Police Department Chief Johnnie Adams said all seven hate crimes on the SMC campus in 2025 were “vandalism-related,” occurring either in a bathroom or public area on campus.
Bell said reporting hate crimes will help victims feel like they’re not alone and help local leaders see that these incidents are happening so they can provide the resources to address it.
Organizers currently work with K-12 schools in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District and hope to expand the program to SMC in the future.
“People need to be aware year-round. This brings awareness, but let's get people understanding that we don't accept this in Santa Monica. We're a hard no on that. I would really, really like to see SMC students involved,” Bell said. She recommended students check out the toolkit made available on the United Against Hate website and to watch some of the “bystander” webinars.
Bell said the bystander training is important to teach witnesses to hate crimes how to report them. She believes all hate crimes, no matter how small, should be reported.
“There’s a spectrum to these types of incidents. What starts out as, you know, seemingly like it's benign and we're thinking that it's not a big deal and we let those things continue, or we don't report them, those things often lead into other things,” she said.
“I would recommend, if somebody thinks that there is a potential crime, to report it to the police. But, if they’re questioning it and if they’re not sure, certainly report to 2-1-1, anything that they feel is a hate incident… There are people who can help talk them through that, who provide resources,” she said.
United Against Hate Week started in the Bay Area as a way for local communities to create events, webinars and conferences to bring leaders, communities and organizations together.
According to the organization’s website, “United Against Hate Week emerged from a United Against Hate poster campaign created by Bay Area Cities in response to white supremacist rallies in Berkeley and San Francisco in 2017.” It has since spread to more than 200 communities.
In Los Angeles County, United Against Hate Week has partnered with LA vs Hate and Not In Our Town to raise awareness and support their year-round work.
In the City of Santa Monica, this year’s United Against Hate Week activities kicked off with a free performance of “Thurgood” on Oct. 18 at the Santa Monica Playhouse during the Binge Fringe Festival. Webinars are offered online, teaching bystander intervention and active shooter preparedness training.
To report a hate crime on campus, call SMCPD at 310-434-4300 or dial 911 from a campus phone.
Off campus, people can text “HATE” in 15 languages to 52-211 to file a confidential, anonymous report. They can also connect with a trained, trauma-informed care coordinator for support and referrals to free services.