The number of reported hate-motivated crimes directed at the LGBTQ2+ community is declining in Ottawa, which would be good news if there wasn’t so much uncertainty around the numbers.
Both the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) and community groups point to under-reporting as a confounding variable in the effort to effectively capture the city’s hate crime landscape.
OPS data shows the number of hate-motivated crimes directed at the LGBTQ2+ community fell from 76 in 2023 to 51 in 2024. The number dropped further this past year, down to just 26 reported incidents.
But some groups say the drop in 2025 is at odds with their experience.
Olivia Baker, a trainer and content specialist with Fondation Émergence, a non-profit “dedicated to the fight against homophobia and transphobia,” says in the group’s understanding the number of assaults and hate crimes against the community have actually been on the rise.
“Assaults and hate crimes have increased quite dramatically, by 72 per cent in recent years,” said Baker. “We also need to consider all the crimes that go unreported and the complaints that go undocumented.”
Baker says that, according to their information, 91 per cent of LGBTQ2+ people who experienced violence related to their sexual orientation or gender identity did not report the incident to police.
“So when we talk about these [OPS] figures, it’s important to remember that this is really just the tip of the iceberg,” said Baker.
Ottawa Police Sgt. Sal Barakat, of the OPS hate and bias crime unit, acknowledges there are gaps in police data.
“Absolutely, there’s no doubt that sometimes people in the community may not report, and there’s a few reasons for that,” said Barakat. “There’s members within communities that don’t trust the police or even (hold) a belief that we don’t take we don’t take the situation seriously.”
Joey Sims, programming coordinator at Carleton University’s Gender and Sexuality Resource Centre said this is what they’ve observed.
“In my role, I have noticed that many members of the community may be hesitant to officially report instances of anti-2SLGBTQ+ violence for a variety of reasons,” said Sims. “Fear of retraumatization, fear of having their identity outed, past negative experiences with institutions, and concerns about not being believed.”
According the organization Egale, Canadian research shows that under-reporting of hate crimes is particularly high among LGBTQ2+ community members, because of the belief that the police will not take the incident seriously or that it may even be a source of further victimization by law enforcement.
Barakat says the OPS is trying to bridge that gap.
“That’s why we have our diversity relations and resource section,” said Barakat. “They go out and they speak to people in the community.
“I myself speak quite a bit with members of the community, and I always say, if something happens, make sure people report.”
Beyond accurate capturing of crime-related data, Barakat notes that the larger work of the police service heavily relies on the community.
“That is the basis of policing, if you will,” Barakat said. “So no different than … if you don’t ever go see the doctor, but you’re ailing, the doctor can’t help you.”
FYI: Hate crimes can be filed on the Ottawa Police Service website. Crisis lines for the LGBTQ2+ community can be found here.
