Senate Passes Matthew Shepard Bill

The Human Rights Campaign just announced that the U.S. Senate has officially passed the Matthew Shepard Bill. Pending passage in the House and the President's approval this bill, if enacted, would expand federal anti-hate crime legislation to include acts of violence which are motivated by the victim's gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability. The HRC hails the passage of this bill by the Senate as a major step towards equal rights for Gays and Lesbians in the US.

According to the HRC website the FBI estimates that 25 hate crimes occur in the US each day, and approximately one in six of these are directed at the GLBT community. Under current law, these one in six are prosecuted only as regular felonies, without the added penalties of hate crime legislation. If the Matthew Shepard Bill comes into law, these crimes would be classified as hate crimes, in the same category as crimes motivated by racism. President Bush maintains that the bill is "unnecessary" and says he will veto it.

According to ABC news, Senator Kennedy (D-MA) argued that the bill, which is named for the Wyoming college student who was killed for his sexual orientation in 1998, is necessary because "Hate crimes are increasing." The Bill passed the Senate at a vote of 60 to 39, despite a republican filibuster. "Today's Senate vote sends a bold and unmistakable message that violent crimes motivated by hate must end," said the parents of the bill's namesake, Judy and Dennis Shepard, as quoted by ABC news. The Human Rights Campaign contributed heavily to the passage of the bill, having sent 350,000 emails, made 30,000 calls, and written 5,000 letters.

Rather than standing on its own, the bill was passed as an amendment to a bill authorizing funds for the Defense Department as part of the continuing war effort in Iraq. Although its passage through the Senate represents a major step towards adding assaults on Gays and Lesbians to the list of crimes prosecutable as hate crimes, the bill has many opponents, and one major hurdle left to clear before it becomes law: as Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said, "This bill will get vetoed" as quoted by the Guardian Unlimited.