What: Statewide conference in response to hate crimes in Michigan.
When: Friday, September 12, 2008, 7:30 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Where: MSU Kellogg Center, 55 South Harrison Rd., East Lansing, MI

Purpose: The Michigan Alliance Against Hate Crimes (MIAAHC) in collaboration with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights will host, "MI Response to Hate", a conference to develop community-based response systems to hate and bias incidents in Michigan.

Michigan ranks third in the nation for the number of reported bias-motivated crimes. This event will feature workshops on the status of hate activity in the state, the legal implications of hate speech and the First Amendment, how to build public-private partnerships for crisis response, how to address the needs of limited English proficient communities and how to reduce violence through community coalitions.

For more information on this conference or the Michigan Alliance Against Hate Crimes visit, http://www.miaahc.com

For more information on the Michigan Department of Civil Rights, visit http://www.michigan.gov/mdcr