Are Dems trying to sneak 'hate crimes' through?
Jim Brown - OneNewsNow - 7/15/2009 7:15:00 AM
Senate Democrats are once again trying to pass a hate crimes bill by attaching it as an amendment to the Defense Authorization bill.
The hate crimes legislation, known as the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (S. 909), would add gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability to the list of protected categories under federal hate crimes law. A vote is expected Thursday on the Defense Authorization bill and its accompanying hate crimes amendment.
Story continues below ...
Results from our related poll
What have you done to express your concern or opinions about
the 'hate crimes' bill coming up for a vote in the Senate on Thursday?
Bishop Harry Jackson, Jr., chairman of the High Impact Leadership Coalition, warns the hate crimes measure will lead to more than just the prosecution of violent crimes that are deemed bias-related.
"The problem is that the way that they define violence has to do with name-calling, has to do with an array of different things," he explains. "And the ultimate issue is going to be that it only takes one or two lawsuits, or the threat of a lawsuit, for there to be a chilling effect on pastors from preaching these passages of the Bible like Leviticus and Romans 1, and many, many other passages as our culture slips more into darkness."
Those scriptural passages address homosexual acts, which the Bible says God considers to be an abomination.
Jackson and other conservative activists are hoping to persuade a group of about 14 moderate senators to oppose the bill. They include Arkansas Democrats Blanche Lincoln and Mark Pryor, Louisiana Democrat Mary Landrieu, and Republicans John McCain (Arizona) Lindsey Graham (South Carolina) and Judd Gregg (New Hampshire).
