Holder: "We Have To Face" Hate Crimes

(CBS/AP)  Attorney General Eric Holder urged Congress Thursday to pass a new hate crimes law which would allow the federal government to prosecute cases of violence based on sexual orientation, gender or disability.

Holder, who testified at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, cited the recent killing of a security guard at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington. The alleged assailant is a white supremacist.

"One has to look at the unfortunate history of our nation. There are groups that have been singled out, that have been targets of violence," the attorney general said. "We have to face and confront that reality."

Lawmakers at the hearing debated the possible impact of the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The bill - named after a gay man killed in Wyoming in 1998 - would allow federal prosecution of violence committed because of the actual or perceived gender, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity of the victim.

For more than a decade, Democrats have sought to update the hate crimes law, which already makes it a federal crime to attack someone because of their race, creed or color.

Republicans at the hearing questioned whether the change would expand federal power unnecessarily into cases already being prosecuted by state and local officials. They also questioned why certain victims of violence should be singled out for particular types of protection.

"That's part of the problem. Some are protected groups and get special protection under this law," said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala. "You argued your case. I've listened to it and I'm not persuaded."

According to FBI data, the number of hate crimes per year is relatively unchanged in the past 10 years. In 1998, the FBI reported 7,755 hate crime incidents, and in 2007 the bureau reported 7,624.

About half of all hate crimes are motivated by racial bias. The other two most frequent hate crimes are those motivated by religion or sexual orientation.

Holder said the statistics show hate crimes against Hispanics have increased four years in a row.

Sessions and a Democratic lawmaker, Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, both voiced concerns that the bill could be used to prosecute a church leader who speaks out against homosexuality, if a member of their congregation then assaults a gay person.

"This is a bill to hold people accountable for conduct, not for speech," Holder insisted.

Democrats on the panel were overwhelmingly supportive of the legislation.

"Hate crimes are really the worst. They are scarring forever on the individual," said Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., citing her own state's sometimes heated debate over immigration.

Some of that debate, she said, "has been part of hate, and people have been beaten up because they happen to be Hispanic, they happen to be on a street corner where somebody doesn't want them."

Earlier this month, CBS News correspondent Bob Orr reported that in the past eight years, the number of hate groups in America has exploded - up 50 percent - from 602 in 2000 to 926 last year.

[samthor]

i don't know if "hate crimes" is the best word for it.

but i do understand how awful it is. Not only is an attack on a person for their skin color or sexual orientation but also meant to terrorize any and all who have the same skin color or sexual orientation. its two crimes in one the violence and the message it sends. in a way its a form of terrorism. maybe it should be called as such.

[hereticzero]

That's good. Then the first thing the govt. can do is address the fact that current drug laws, against disabled persons using marijuana to ease their pain and suffering, those laws that allow their prosecution, are in fact hate crimes disguised as law.

[tautomer]

why should these crimes be any different than any other? are we to believe that some victims are more sacrosanct than others? are we to believe that assaulting an 80 yr old white grandmother is not as heinous as assaulting a 25 yr old black drag queen?

[ccdsswrkr09]

Hate crimes do exist, but I do think there are some things that a double standard has been accepted and that's not fair. Like, if a white person walks through a black inner city neighborhood and is beat up and killed BECAUSE he's white....that's not considered a hate crime because the victim was white. Now switch the circumstances, a black person walking through a trailer park full of red necks gets beat up and killed BECASE he's black, that would be charged as a hate crime. Double standard? Yes.

[gravyboat3000]

Your post makes absoultely now sense.

But niether does Eric Holder, so you're even.

"We shall overcome, some, day~ay~ay~ay".

Not.

[gravyboat3000]

Crime is crime.

We don't need NEW laws, we need to enforce the ones that are on the books more effectively.

This legislation is a waste of time.

Holder sites the murder of the security guard?

Federal laws are already in place, both terrorism and race based ,"hate crime", laws.

Quit trying to put YOUR stamp on American law, and do your ******* job!

Sorry, but this shyte pizzes me off!

[Aldymac]

7624 hate crimes out of 300 million people, what is that percentage? Domestic violence among homosexuals has a higher percentage than that. I'm not for hate crimes or racism, but this new law is nothing more than giving big government "more" power over the people. Anything can be labeled a "hate" crime, all you have to do is add it to any existing legislation. Because I had to eat them constantly as a kid, I "hate" black eyed beans, is that a hate crime?

[mnbrant]

By Offense Type
Crimes against persons
There were 5,449 victims of hate crimes against persons in 2006. Regarding these victims and offenses:

Three persons were murdered and six were forcibly raped.
46.0 percent experienced intimidation.
31.9 percent were victims of simple assault.
21.6 percent were victims of aggravated assault.
Less than one percent (0.3) were victims of other types of offenses, which are collected only in the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).
(Based on Table 2.)

Crimes against property
In 2006, there were 4,165 hate crime victims of crimes against property. Of these:

80.4 percent were victims of destruction/damage or vandalism.
6.8 percent were victims of larceny-theft.
4.8 percent were victims of robbery.
4.2 percent were victims of burglary.
1.2 percent were victims of arson.
1.1 percent were victims of motor vehicle theft.
1.5 percent were victims of other hate crime offenses, which are collected only in the NIBRS.

There you have it. 46% of personal hate crimes were verbal. Calling a gay a f a g or a punk a hippie or something like that.

80% of property hate crimes were graffiti.

of 9914 hate crimes 6054 were of the verbal, graffiti type. I am disabled and bi and have no use for this bill. Other than the army I have never had anybody go after me and I don't think the army is included in this bill.

[caeric]

You haven't actually read the statute governing intimidation/assault/harassment in your state have you?

[mnbrant]

there are no statutes for intimidation in Minnesota. I couldn't even find definitions of intimidation for hate crimes on google yet you are counting 2500 acts of intimidation out of 9000 total as hate crimes. I do commend you for trying to dispute me but of course I am indisputable.

[government_control]

12% of the general population, and 40% of the prison population.

Holder cant stop americans from drawing their own conclusions.

[government_control]

Holder is the most hated man in america and no law can change that.

[gunownerdan]

Why does Holder and Obama support racist gun control laws?
Please watch "NO GUNS FOR NEGROES" for free on youtube or at JPFO.org!