A bias incident is an event which expresses a bias against a person because of a perceived quality of that person such as race, ethnicity, color, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, political affiliation, disability, veteran or family status. Bias incidents often increase levels of fear and intergroup tension in communities, and their victims often face greater difficulty coming to terms with their victimization. A bias incident may not always be against a person who is of the targeted group, but it is motivated because the perpetrator believes the victim to be part of the targeted group.