The European Disability Forum welcomes the commitment of the European Commission to protect the rights of victims in the European Union (EU) and the initiative to extend the list of EU crimes in Article 83(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) to hate speech and hate crime.
Similar to other discriminated persons in the EU, persons with disabilities are at higher risk of being victims of hate speech and hate crime. In general, persons with disabilities, including women with disabilities, and persons with intellectual and psychosocial disabilities, are at higher risk of harassment, violence and crime, including within the digital world. According to data published by the Fundamental Rights Agency of the European Union (FRA), 50% of persons with disabilities have reported being harassed over a 5-year period, comparing to 37% of persons without disabilities.
Download the position paper:
EDF position and recommendation on hate speech and hate crime (PDF)
EDF position and recommendation on hate speech and hate crime (Word)