Hate Crimes Redefined

The House passed a bill updating the definitions of hate crimes to include added protections based on sexual orientation, gender, gender identity and disability. The bill will also provide a financial support to state and local authorities, with grants for investigation and prosecution of hate crimes. The federal government could step in and prosecute if states requested it or declined to exercise their authority.

This bill was passed especially after President Obama urged the House that the bill would "enhance civil rights protections, while also protecting our freedom of speech and association." Two years earlier, a weaker, yet similar bill was struck down in Congress when George W. Bush (of course) threatened to veto it if it ever made it to his desk.

As always, the Conservatives (Republicans) feel that this bill will divide the country by giving extra protection to "special" groups. They also said it was not fair to give other people such protection. Well I think that the people would not need this extra protection if hate crimes did not exist, but they do. Hate crimes threaten people's right to the freedom that every American is entitled to, but for some reason other people feel they do not deserve, such as the perpetrators of hate crimes. That is why extra protection is needed to ensure that in the end, everyone has the same rights as the other person.

As majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., countered against the Republicans arguments, "We in America have said we believe all people ought to be treated equally. If America stands for anything it stands for equality under the law."

Also, some interesting tidbits are there were 926 active hate groups in 2008, compared to 602 in 2000, as tracked by the Southern Poverty Law Center. An increase of over 33% in eight years. And there are currently forty-five states that have laws against hate crimes, with the five that do not being: Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina and Wyoming. Now tell me that the current hate crime laws are actually working. Yeah, that's what I thought.