Nashville Opens A Hotline To Track Incidents Of Hate, Harassment And Bias

Nashville has not been immune to acts of hate, harassment and bias in recent months. But exactly how often they’ve occurred is difficult to say. So a coalition of immigrant, LGBT, and religious organizations debuted a new counting method this week.

The effort called “Respect Nashville” consists of
a new website and hotline (615-669-6223) to receive reports of local incidents.

It arrives one day after a bomb threat
forced the evacuation of the Gordon Jewish Community Center in Nashville, and in the wake of an anecdotal increase in incidents since election season.

Members from the seven local organizations that designed the reporting system say they’ve gathered examples of workplace harassment; threats to immigrant-run businesses; vandalism to a church’s LGBT welcome sign; Hispanics bullied with jokes about deportation; and Muslim women who have had their headwear forcibly removed.

“We’ve seen an increase in acts of hate, violence and intolerance,” said Metro Councilman Bob Mendes. “Some people are emboldened to act with something less than kindness in their hearts.”

Obvious hate crimes will still be handled by law enforcement. Respect Nashville intends to count and respond to a wider array of bias and intimidation. The coalition also wants to be welcoming to residents who may be afraid to come forward officially.

The project follows reports from local groups like the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, where staff member Pratik Dash cited a spike in school bullying.

“So many Latino students, regardless of their immigration status, have been told by their peers that they should pack their bags because they will be deported soon,” Dash said Thursday.

He also recounted the story of a Latino cashier at a hardware store who was approached by a customer and asked, “Why haven’t they deported you yet?”

These sorts of harassment may not count as hate crimes, but Respect Nashville wants to keep track and find ways to improve civility.

The challenge is obvious. Zulfat Suara, with the American Muslim Advisory Council, spoke of a Nashville woman — who teaches at a public school —berated while driving for wearing a hijab.

“None of this matters to her attacker, because the only thing she could see is the scarf on her head,” Suara said.

The coalition said the material it gathers will be made public as statistics and that recommendations for policy changes or community events could follow the findings.

And Mendes said the intent is to respond to hate with a unified voice.

“An attack on the Jewish community is an attack on all of us,” Mendes said. “Rather than being silent and just letting the Jewish community deal with their bomb threat, we’re going to speak up together, saying this is wrong.”

The members of the coalition comprise: the American Civil Liberties Union of TN; American Muslim Advisory Council; Jewish Federation of Nashville; National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Nashville Chapter; Tennessee Disability Coalition; Tennessee Equality Project; and Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition. The group was first convened by the Metro Human Relations Commission.