The FBI has released its latest hate crime statistics. As is typical of these hyper-partisan times, the observer sees in them what they are conditioned to. The 2017 report acknowledges upfront that more police departments are reporting these incidents to the FBI, but fails to make the distinction as to whether or not this is related to a true proliferation of criminal activity inspired by hatred, or is because law enforcement agencies are becoming more responsive to federal requests for data.

Historically, the FBI ranks its investigative priorities in order to properly allocate resources. It considers hate crimes as the highest investigative priority in its civil rights program, which is ranked fifth in overall priority behind stalwart and omnipresent threats such as terrorism and foreign intelligence gathering.