In the first week of May, on an ordinary work morning near City Hall, I experienced a hate crime. I am a Black woman. I was walking to work when a white man pulled up beside me and started shouting racist abuse. It came without warning and without provocation. The language he used was dehumanising.
My instinct was to protect myself. I took out my phone and started recording. I told him clearly that I was recording him and that I would use the footage as evidence. Through my work with Bradford Hate Crime Alliance, I know how important evidence can be. I also know how quickly moments like this can be dismissed if there is nothing to support your account.
As he continued shouting, a police inspector happened to be nearby. He intervened immediately. The man was stopped, his rights were read to him, and I was asked to call 999. He was arrested there and then. I was given a crime number and later provided a full statement.
I went to work shaken, upset, and confused. What had just happened did not feel real. By the time I got home and spoke to friends and family, the tone of the conversation changed.
I was told to ignore it.
I was told not to press charges.
I was told I should be grateful to be here.
I was told not to put my details on police records.
Even someone who witnessed the incident told me he had been abused by the same man and had ignored it. When I told him the man had been arrested, his response was not support. It was fear. Fear of consequences. Fear of involvement.
In all of this, one thing was missing. Support for the victim.
The focus shifted away from what had happened to me and onto managing the discomfort of others. I was being advised to shrink myself, to move on quietly, to accept abuse as something that comes with being different.
That was not right.
I spoke to my Director. His response changed everything. He acknowledged my fear and my doubts, but he was clear. He told me that reporting the incident mattered. Not just for me, but for what comes next. That behaviour escalates. That verbal abuse can turn into physical harm. That taking a stand sends a message that this conduct is not acceptable in our society.
That conversation gave me the courage I needed.
I continued with the case.
Throughout the process, the police kept me informed. I was updated when the case went to the Crown Prosecution Service. I was told when charges were authorised. Two weeks ago, I received confirmation that the perpetrator had been sentenced. I was also compensated for the emotional distress caused.
Justice was served.
This experience challenged a belief many people hold. That nothing happens when you report hate crime. That reporting is pointless. That the system does not work.
In my case, it did.
People often do not report hate crime for clear reasons. Fear of not being believed. Fear of retaliation. Fear of immigration consequences. Fear of being labelled difficult. Fear of bringing attention to themselves. Sometimes it is pressure from family or community. Sometimes it is exhaustion from having to explain your pain again and again.
These fears are real. I felt them too.
But reporting helped me feel seen and heard. It told me that my safety matters. It told me that being an immigrant or being different does not mean I should accept abuse. Hate crime is not limited to race. It affects people because of disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, and other protected characteristics. Anyone can be targeted. No one deserves it.
Reporting hate crime is not about revenge. It is about protection. It is about preventing escalation. It is about data that helps services respond better. It is about drawing a line and saying this behaviour is not acceptable in our society.
This experience reinforced why reporting centres matter. Why support matters. Why victims need reassurance, not silence.
I reported because I could. I reported because I knew how. And I reported because I refused to let fear decide the outcome.
Something does get done. And when we report, we help make our communities safer for everyone.
If you experience hate crime, you are not overreacting. You are not causing trouble. And you are not alone.
Support exists. Use it.
