Robert Knight of Concerned Women for America has written the best summary of the dangers of the so-called "hate crimes legislation" we've seen. It is clear that such legislation is only intended as a tool for silencing all opposition to the homosexual agenda. Too bad so many of our Congressmen are clueless. Excerpts:
"Hate crime" laws pose a danger to civil liberties in three ways:
They pave the way for suppression of the freedoms of speech, association and religion.
They violate the concept of equal protection under the law.
They introduce the un-American concept of "thought crime," in which someone's actions are "more" illegal based on their thoughts or beliefs....
A grandmother walking down the street should have at least as much protection under the law as someone who is leaving a "gay" bar. But under "hate crimes" laws that include "sexual orientation," the same assault would be punished with greater penalties if the victim were perceived as homosexual.
There is no evidence that victims of "hate crimes" are receiving any less protection than victims of other crimes. To suggest otherwise insults the men and women of the nation's law enforcement community.
Homosexual activists often exaggerate the incidence of "hate crimes," which make up less than 1 percent of all crimes. Over the past several years, even with more law enforcement agencies reporting, the number of "hate crimes" based on "sexual orientation" has dropped....
Liberal activists increasingly invoke such phrases as "hostile speech" and a "climate of violence" to describe pro-family opinion on homosexual issues. The net effect is to reclassify legitimate opinion and free speech as "hate speech" that can be censored....
As the definition of "hate crimes" expands, practitioners of traditional religion and those who support policies favoring the traditional family increasingly will face legal sanctions.... Will recognition of marriage someday be a "hate crime" in America? Yes, if "hate crime" laws continue to be enacted by well-meaning but misinformed legislators.
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