Baltimore OUTloud | Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Community News Maryland

Federal Hate Crimes Bill Signed into Law
‘First major piece of civil rights legislation to protect lgbt Americans’

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In an historic breakthrough, President Barack Obama on October 28^th signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law. The new law gives the Justice Department the power to investigate and prosecute bias-motivated violence where the perpetrator has selected the victim because of the person's actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. The legislation was added as a provision to the FY 2010 National Defense Authorization Act earlier this summer.

"This law honors our lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (lgbt) brothers and sisters whose lives were cut short because of hate," said Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese in a statement. "Today’s signing of the first major piece of civil rights legislation to protect lgbt Americans represents a historic milestone in the inevitable march towards equality. Although this is a major step in fighting the scourge of hate violence, it is not the end of the road. As a community, we will continue to dedicate ourselves to changing not only laws but also hearts and minds. After more than a decade of advocacy, local police and sheriffs’ departments now have the full resources of the Justice Department available to them."

Locally the signing was met with cheers. "Equality Maryland commends President Obama for signing the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law. This is a tremendous victory for the lgbt community," Equality Maryland Executive Director Morgan Sheets told OUTloud. "Hate crimes differ from other crimes in that they target a whole community as opposed to just an individual victim. Hate crimes are intended to cause fear among an entire group of people leaving the victim and others in their group feeling isolated, vulnerable and unprotected. This law sends a strong message and provides local law enforcement agencies with the resources needed to investigate and prosecute these heinous crimes."

HRC’s Joe Solmonese also noted that "we will always remember the tireless efforts of Senator Edward Kennedy on this issue. Senator Kennedy once said that this legislation sends ‘a message about freedom and equality that will resonate around the world.’ This marks the first time that we as a nation have explicitly protected the lgbt community in the law," said Solmonese.

The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act honors the memory of Matthew Shepard, a Wyoming college student brutally murdered in an act of hate violence in 1998, and James Byrd, an African-American man who was dragged to death in Jasper, Texas, in 1998.

"We are incredibly grateful to Congress and the president for taking this step forward on behalf of hate crime victims and their families, especially given the continuing attacks on people simply for living their lives openly and honestly," said Judy Shepard, executive director of the Matthew Shepard Foundation and who witrnessed the signing. "But each of us can and must do much more to ensure true equality for all Americans."

"We appreciate everyone who worked so hard on this bill. My son was taken at such an early age and we hope this law will help prevent other families from going through what we experienced," said Stella Byrd, mother of James Byrd. "Even though we’re different colors and different sexual orientations or gender identities, God made us all and he loves us all."