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Hate-crime laws:
Protecting people from verbal & physical attacks based on sexual orientation

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Overview:

Hate-crime legislation increases a criminal's sentence if it can be proven that the crime of which they were found guilty was motivated by hatred of the victim because of their race, religion, sex, or some other factor that is specified in the law.

Hate speech legislation criminalizes the denigration, ridicule, or expression of hatred against a person or group on the basis of the victim's race, religion, etc.

These types of legislation do not offer any special protections to any specific group. They usually include religion and sex as protected classes. They protect Christians, Jews, Muslims, Wiccans, and others alike; they protect both men and women. Those laws which include sexual orientation as a protected class shield everyone equally, whether they be heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual.

Whenever such legislation is introduced, there is considerable opposition -- mainly from religious and social conservatives -- to the inclusion of sexual orientation as a protected class. Often overlooked is the fact that heterosexuals are protected as much as bisexuals and homosexuals by this type of legislation. Some conservatives often claim that the laws give special privileges to homosexuals, as in a comment by Rev. Lou Sheldon of the traditional values coalition:

"Under the cover of fighting so-called 'hate crimes,' H.R. 1592 will be used to fund anti-Christian, pro-homosexual/drag queen materials for children – and divert scarce federal resources away from fighting Islamic terrorism."

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References used:

The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.

1. Rev. Lou Sheldon, "Pro-homosexual/drag queen bill on fast track in House of Representatives," tvc-national newsletter, 2007-APR-12.