MTA unveils ‘Hate Has No Place in Our Transportation System’ campaign to combat hate crimes

A new public awareness campaign aimed at combatting hate crimes has been launched by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), according to an announcement from MTA Chairman and CEO Patrick J. Foye.

The new campaign, “Hate Has No Place in Our Transportation System,” will appear on digital screens across subways, buses and commuter railroads promoting kindness, respect and solidarity.

“New York is built on diversity, openness and inclusion,” said Foye. “Every New Yorker should be able to travel free of harassment and feel safe while riding with the MTA. We want to do what we can to put a halt to these despicable crimes. We hope that our campaign will not only help reduce bias activity but will remind everyone of the core New York values of kindness, respect and solidarity.”

The campaign comes at a time that the frequency of hate crimes – often taking the form of vandalism that spreads messages of hate – has been increasing, according to MTA, noting the NYPD Transit Bureau investigated 75 hate crimes in 2019, an increase of 42 percent over the 53 investigated in 2018. The number of hate crimes investigated by the MTA Police Department held steady in 2019, declining three percent to 26 hate crimes investigated on the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR), Metro-North Railroad and Staten Island Railway, from 27 the prior year.

“We are committed to battling all hate crimes of all natures, regardless of the group being targeted,” said MTA Police Acting Chief Joseph McGrann. “MTAPD detectives are assigned to investigate hate crimes as their focus, whether it is hateful graffiti or other bias-related crimes. Anyone found to be perpetrating these crimes will be prosecuted to the maximum extent of the law.”

The campaign was launched on the 75th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp. MTA says the launch of the campaign follows the attack on a transgender woman on the C line in Harlem over the weekend.

The ads will appear on more than more than 4,000 digital screens across the New York City subway, 2,600 screens on buses and 550 screens on the LIRR and Metro-North Railroad.

All ads feature iconic signage associated with the NYC Transit system, LIRR and Metro-North and share the message that “hate has no place” in the MTA network. The ads provide information on how to report hate crimes, concluding with the tagline: “New York rides together.”

“This campaign is about creating a more inclusive community that is reflective of the kindness and respect New Yorkers display for one another every day, and also standing in solidarity against hate and intolerance,” said Catherine Rinaldi, president of MTA Metro-North Railroad. “Our goal is to have zero hate crimes on our railroad, so if you are witness to a suspected bias incident or crime in progress, please contact law enforcement immediately. If you see graffiti or any other hateful behavior, let us know.”

Rod Brooks, LIRR senior vice president for operations added, “Like our sister agencies, the Long Island Rail Road has zero tolerance for bias-motivated threats or harassment on board our trains or in our stations. We fully support and cooperate with all efforts by the MTA Police to investigate bias-related crimes, and we are pleased to be working with all MTA agencies in support of this campaign. Anything the LIRR can do to combat bias crimes and hate crimes, we will do.”