What happened: After receiving serious death threats on Facebook for being a member of the LGBTI community, and for posting the rights and freedoms of LGBTI people, the individual D.P. sought free legal aid from the Helsinki Committee for Human Rights. It was clear from the death threats that the perpetrator verbally and physically harassed and assaulted members of marginalized communities in the past.
Brief description of the incident with bias indicators: In this incident the bias motive is sexual orientation, with the bias indicators being:
- Sexual orientation – the LGBTI community in the public and online space is a target of violence and often subjected to threats;
- Pattern of previous incidents – hate speech and previous assaults on members of the LGBTI community.
Impact on the victims and the community: These types of incidents call into question the general safety in the country, and the cohesion among the different groups in society, particularly the health and safety of LGBTI people.
