HATE CRIMES

Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act - Federal Hate Crimes Legislation

 Anti-gay hate is devastating to individuals, families and communities.  As parents, friends and family members of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, we are painfully aware that our loved ones could be targets of hate violence at any time just because of who they are.  We fear violence against those we care about.  Many of us have already faced the murders of, or assaults on, our children and loved ones.  Our families and friends don’t deserve this - no one does.

 Fully Inclusive Hate Crimes Action Now

 PFLAG stands ready to support this important legislation once a minor but significant language clarification takes place, making inclusion of gender identity expressly stated.  We strongly encourage you to support hate crimes legislation that includes clear protections for persons based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

 Why a Hate Crimes Bill is Needed

  • Documented hate crimes based on sexual orientation are on the rise according to FBI statistics. Unfortunately, the FBI data does not report separately on crimes against those who are targeted for non-traditional gender expression.  We know that anti-LGBT hate crimes are underreported. 

  • State Laws are inadequate – 27 states and the District of Columbia have hate crimes laws inclusive of sexual orientation, and only five of those and the District of Columbia are expressly transgender inclusive.

PFLAG will support legislation to strengthen existing federal hate crime laws by allowing the Department of Justice to assist local prosecutions, and where appropriate, investigate and prosecute cases in which violence occurs because of the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity.  We will support a bill that eliminates some overly restrictive obstacles to federal involvement in many cases in which individuals kill or injure others because of anti-LGBT bias.

The Truth is, Hate Crimes are SIMPLY NOT “Like Any Other Kind of Crime”

  • Hate Crimes are Message Crimes.  Anti-LGBT hate violence, like all bias crime, damages individuals, families, groups our communities.  Perpetrators of anti-LGBT violence send a clear message to LGBT people, those perceived to be LGBT, or even their supporters, that they are unwelcome and unsafe in a particular community.

  • Most Hate Crimes are Committed by “Average People.”  Perpetrators are typically not “psychos,” neo-nazis or skinheads, but are otherwise law-abiding people who disdain those who are different or fear those differences.  Recent research suggests that anti-LGBT hate crime perpetrators perceive gay bashing to be socially sanctioned and therefore acceptable behavior.

  • Anti-LGBT Hate Crime, Like Other Bias Crime, Is Preventable.  According to the American Psychological Association, “hate crimes are not necessarily random, uncontrollable, or inevitable occurrences,” and  “there is overwhelming evidence that society can intervene to reduce or prevent many forms of violence, especially among young people, including the hate-induced violence that threatens and intimidates entire categories of people.”

  • Anti-LGBT Hate Violence Must Be Addressed Both Locally and Nationally.  Strong legislation, rigorous law enforcement and community education will do a great deal.  State and local authorities investigate and prosecute the majority of hate crimes - and will continue to do so once the kind of legislation PFLAG would support is enacted.  Such a bill would provide federal assistance to local authorities in these investigations and federal prosecutions when necessary to achieve a just result.

  • Support for a Federal Hate Crimes Bill is Widespread.  Support from notable law enforcement agencies and state and local leaders includes 22 state attorneys general, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Police Foundation and the National Sheriffs' Association.  More than 175 law enforcement, civil rights and religious organizations that supported the Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act.

Responses to some possible objections

 

·        This kind of legislation would punish people for their thoughts.  No, the legislation would hold people accountable for their actions.  If they merely hold hostile thoughts or dislike for members of a particular category of people, and do not act out on that hostility in a criminal way, there is no crime.  The version of the Local Law Enforcement Enhancement Act introduced in the 107th  and 108th Congress was consistent with established constitutional First Amendment precedent.

 

  • All crime is crime – why should Congress federalize activities already criminal under state law?  Since 1995, the Republican-controlled Congress has enacted more than 37 laws that create new federal crimes or impose new federal criminal penalties for conduct that is already criminal under state law.  Most of these laws create more than one new federal crime.  The laws address a wide range of issues from punishing “deadbeat dads” to protecting Veterans’ cemeteries, to a bill signed into law on August 2, 2000, that protects animals used in law enforcement.  If we are willing to extend federal protections to animals, why not people?

  • All crime is crime – why treat this type any differently?  Taking motive for criminal acts into account happens in courtrooms every day – when someone is murdered, they are still dead whether the or not the perpetrator is found guilty in the first, second or third degree.  Motive in the case of hate crimes is relevant because the perpetrators are also damaging particular groups within communities.

  • Wouldn’t Federal involvement in these cases be unconstitutional?  Senator Hatch raised these concern when the version introduced in the 106th Congress was considered.  In part due to these concerns, the bill was revised and strengthened.  Since the revisions, legal experts and career experts in the DOJ believe the bill would withstand constitutional challenge.

 Hate Crime Statistics

The  National Anti-violence Project  (NAVP) is based in New York, and it gathers data from GLBT anti-violence programs across the USA and collates them into  annual reports. It gathers data on both GLBT bias related crimes and assaults, and GLBT domestic violence. The current reports and those for previous years can be downloaded from the NAVP's website.

The statistics reported by the NAVP differ greatly from those reported by official government sources. It is generally recognized that official sources under-represent GLBT bias related crimes by as much as 75% as victims are often afraid to report the incident to the authorities for fear of further discrimination, and harassment, or for fear of disclosure of their sexual orientation or gender identity to families or employers.