Hate speech involves spoken or written words that are either intended to, or recklessly, send a hate-based message. Hate speech is commonly spread via social media platforms.
A recent study by the University of Sussex and DEMOS found that there are approximately 393 Islamophobic tweets sent each day from within the UK alone.
Some examples include:
- Abusive and threatening words stated in a public space that are likely to cause harassment, alarm and distress
- Stirring up hatred (using spoken or written words) towards someone based on their race, religion or sexual orientation
- Sending electronic communications that are indecent, grossly offensive or menacing in character
Note that hate speech may or may not amount to a hate crime depending on location and the context within which is it stated.