Talking Points on Hate/Thought Crime Legislation

Constitutionally Suspect – The 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution affords equal protection to every citizen under the law. Hate crime laws establish an unjust system where victims are treated differently based on the “actual or perceived” class or group with which they identify.  Hate crime laws do not equally protect citizens. 

Unfair – The proposed categories of “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” in H.R. 1592 create special classes of victims based solely upon behavioral identification with a group of people.  If passed, the legislation would make a new protected class based on sexual behavior and self-identity equal with race, color, religion and national origin – a premise civil rights leaders find untenable. 

Dangerous – Hate crime laws ultimately prosecute thoughts in an Orwellian sense and require the government to determine the feelings and motives of a criminal. According to the FBI’s annual report on Hate Crimes, identifying feelings is beyond law enforcement’s ability and jurisdiction.  Due to the subjectivity of feelings and motives, there is enormous possibility of error in determining them.  To maintain order and justice, government must judge actions – not feelings.

Indefinable – Today, more than 25 different “sexual orientations” and behaviors are recognized, and homosexual activists insist that gender is fluid.  “Sexual orientation” and “gender identity” are impossible to verify or precisely define, which may be why “gender identity” is inadequately defined in H.R. 1592 and “sexual orientation” is left undefined. Moreover, there is no scientific evidence that people are born with a sexual orientation.  Indeed, many people change their sexual orientation over the course of their lives and numerous studies confirm that sexual orientation is changeable.

Unnecessary – The most recent FBI Uniform Crime Report shows that bias-motivated crimes are on the decrease. In fact, less than 17% of all law enforcement agencies reported a single Hate Crime in 2005.  A total of only 1,171 “sexual orientation” bias crimes were reported (one-half of which were name-calling, pushing or shoving) – representing the largest and most consistent decrease of all bias-motivated crimes.  In addition, there is no evidence that states and localities are failing to prosecute hate crimes under existing statutes.

Un-American – Making protected classes based on sexual behavior will jeopardize our constitutional rights to freedom of speech and religious expression. It is a short step down the slippery slope from a hate crime law to a “hate speech” law. As we have recently seen in Pennsylvania, Canada and other countries around the world, speaking one’s personal conviction in a secular or religious context can be prosecuted under hate crime statutes. Hate crime laws inevitably lead to thought Crime laws and the criminalization of beliefs.