Senate to Vote Shortly on Matthew Shepard Act: Call Today!

[LostInTime]

Senate Files Hate Crimes Bill for Potential Vote Today

'Matthew Shepard Act' Submitted as Amendment to Defense Reauthorization; Over 1,300 Clergy Sign on to Letter of Support

WASHINGTON – This morning, Senators Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and Gordon Smith (R-OR) filed the Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act (S. 1105) as an amendment for consideration to the Department of Defense Reauthorization currently being debated before the U.S. Senate.  The bill, commonly referred to as the "Hate Crimes Bill", could receive a Senate vote as early as today.  The virtually identical House version of the bill passed overwhelmingly on May 3rd, 2007 with a bipartisan vote of 237 to 180 – with more than 20 Republicans voting in support of the bill.   

Anti-gay groups like Focus on the Family – whose founder, James Dobson, have mobilized a dangerously misinformed grassroots army. If we don't call right now, critical votes COULD BE LOST to these scare tactics being employed by the radical right.

CALL BOTH YOUR SENATORS RIGHT NOW: Let them know you support the Matthew Shepard Act

Below is the message we would like you to tell both your Senators--You will almost certainly speak to a member of the Senator's staff, not the Senators

As a constituent I want my senator to know that I strongly support Passage of the Matthew Shepard Act (S. 1105).This bill does NOT threaten free speech or weaken the Constitution. This bill would only apply to violent attacks based on the victim's gender, sexual orientation, disability or gender identity. It would also provide funding to help law enforcement agencies investigate and prosecute violent hate crimes. This legislation has been endorsed by over 230 civic, religious, and law enforcement organizations. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to express my support for the Matthew Shepard Act.

The radical right knows the Matthew Shepard Act is a real step toward tolerance in America. They find that so infuriating, they'll stop at nothing to bring it down – even if it means calling lawmakers to spread anger fueled by lies.

We cannot allow our Senators to be intimidated, misled, or swayed by an extremist minority. Thank you for making your calls, and thank you for being a voice of reason today.

Thank you for calling your US Senators.

___________________________________

This came from Equality NC. You can sign up for alerts here.

[Hazumu]

This is what I just sent to the evil Liberal demons, Senators Boxer and Feinstein--

I'm transgendered.  It's not easy to hide that fact from those who would do me and those like me harm.  Violence towards those with nonstandard gender identity is especially violent -- often the attacker(s)inflict more than three times the trauma needed to kill the victim (overkill) in the attack.

The community which I have no choice but to belong needs laws like this, to help stem the acting out of the hatred towards the GLBT community.

Karen Savage

"ASTROTURF" Statement
As a constituent I want my senator to know that I strongly support Passage of the Matthew Shepard Act (S. 1105).This bill does NOT threaten free speech or weaken the Constitution. This bill would only apply to violent attacks based on the victim's gender, sexual orientation, disability or gender identity. It would also provide funding to help law enforcement agencies investigate and prosecute violent hate crimes. This legislation has been endorsed by over 230 civic, religious, and law enforcement organizations. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to express my support for the Matthew Shepard Act.

[HelenW]

Here's a letter to the editor that was in my hometown paper last month:

The 'Hate Crime Bill' Will Remove Our Freedoms, Rights

6/3/2007 - To the Readers' Forum:

The ''Hate Crime Bill'' S.1105 will come before the Senate soon. This bill will remove our freedoms and rights. This Bill will violate our First Amendment rights, our freedom of speech and religion. The Hate Crime Bill also violates the 10th Amendment's limits on the federal government's power. Federal Hate Crime Laws will remove moral responsible life: giving free reign to those with immoral, destructive behavior. Those who want the Hate Crime Bill, seek to control and pervert society.

Hate Crime laws will increase crime and remove equal justice, by giving priority to enforce Hate Crimes. The Hate Crime Bill itself, as it seeks to destroy our inalienable rights, all that is right, good and moral; including our nation's Christian Constitutional Republic form of government. This Hate Crime Bill is anti-American, it expresses hate towards the United States of America. ''Hate Crime Bill'' S.1105 is clearly a form of censorship. The Hate Crime Bill will nullify state authority. This bill wrongly removes freedoms guaranteed in the United States Constitution. Our representatives in government should not be allowed to destroy our rights, our freedoms and our nation.

Hate Crime Bill S.1105 if enacted will be an offense and heresy against our nation. removing liberty and freedom of responsible people. This Hate Crime Bill will give federal government authority over criminal law, making states administrative offices of the federal government. This is in opposition to the Bill or Rights!

Law, will no longer be based on God's laws, as when our nation was founded. Law will be what the people in control say it will be. Hate Crimes, we can already see, will be directed against people with moral values, who seek the pursuit of happiness. It will give license to people who do not have moral values, or self control.

Please write your Senators to reject this un-Constitutional destructive, anti-American, Hate Crime Bill, when it comes before the Senate.

This was not something I could let stand unanswered so I replied - and this time they actually printed it:

6/5/2007 - To the Readers' Forum:

S1105 - The Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007

I have seen the criticisms regarding this bill coming from conservatives and the "religious" right so I decided to go read the act myself.  It's very easy to find on the internet.  The bill that I read has no resemblance to what's been said about it by those groups!

What the bill does is allow the Attorney General to authorize giving Federal assistance to those local law enforcement agencies who cannot adequately investigate crimes that might fall under the definition of a violent "hate crime" after they request it.  If the violent crime can be proven to be motivated by prejudice towards a group that the victim belongs to, extra penalties are applied.  The bill does not change the penalties that are already in place under the existing law which currently adds penalties for violent crimes motivated by the victim's race, ethnicity, national origin or religion.

The bill says that it will give "priority to crimes committed by offenders who have committed crimes in more than one State and to rural jurisdictions that have difficulty covering the extraordinary expenses relating to the investigation or prosecution of the crime."  It doesn't give priority to hate crimes across the board.  It extends protection to groups which have experienced large amounts of bias motivated crime in the past but who have had no recourse to the same protection that others already enjoy.

Freedom of speech and religion are not affected by this law!  The original law has been in effect since 1969 and I have heard of no prosecutions against any of those who have publicly criticized others based on their race, ethnicity, national origin and religion.  Other laws exist which prohibit speech that incite violence, but not this one.  This is a bill that punishes violent crime, not speech.

It's time to strengthen the laws that punish violent crimes committed because of bias.  It's needed and wanted by our country. 230 law enforcement, civil rights, civic and religious organizations have publicly come out in support of this bill.  I think we should all contact our Senators asking them to support this important crime fighting law and I hope that we will all contact our President to express the same sentiment when it comes time for him to sign it.

Both my senators, Hillary Clinton and Charles Schumer, are cosponsors of the bill so I feel that it probably would be preaching to the choir by sending them a letter supporting the bill.  But I think I'll send one anyway (it's SO easy to do via e-mail nowadays) so I can thank them and encourage them for their support of this issue.

hugs & smiles
Emelye

[Laura Elizabeth Jones]

It is utterly laughable that people would think that a hate crime bill being passed would infringe on their constitutional rights. But, no one says a word about how evil the PATRIOT ACT is.

[Hazumu]

Laughable?  No, I found that first letter chilling.  I in no way agree with that writers' position, but I can see where this country would end up if the writers' vision for a "Christian Constitutional Republic" were to be even halfway realized.  "Freedom" means the freedom to discriminate, and "Liberty" means the liberty to sanction the discrimination and condone physical violence against the minority groups.

I also don't like the writer saying that I and others in the LGBT community "do not have moral values, or self control."

Thank you, Emelye, for responding to that letter writer.

Karen