Hate Crime Legislation

Marissa Rogers

Desert Ridge High School – Senior 2008

 

            Every day people are discriminated against based on their race, ethnicity, gender, religion, and sexual orientation. When an individual or groups of people are targeted because of their personal beliefs and of lifestyles, a hate crime is being committed. A hat crime can be anything from intimidation to harassment to physical violence. People have been attacked because of their differences as far as history is recorded. Only recently has this injustice been recognized by society, been given a name, and had laws created to protect its victims.

 

            Public Law #103-322A defines a hate crime as, “a crime in which the defendant intentionally selects a victim…because of the actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, or sexual orientation of any person.”

 

            Although society as a whole has become more accepting of the fat that homosexuality is very much a part of life, many people are still biased and exert hatred towards those who are openly homosexual. An ethical challenge that one might face is whether or not to protect the victims and said hate crimes, regardless of whether her or she believes in and supports homosexuality or not.

 

            Suppose you are attending a high school football game where one of the fans, Clarence, is flamboyantly gay. A group of kids in the bleachers that doesn’t know the boy decides to make him a victim of their own homophobic actions. The unsuspecting boy quickly becomes a target of the student’s popcorn and left over candy. Startled by the strangers’ animosity, but accustomed to the unwanted attention, Clarence turns around and shoots a defensive look. Laughing, the obvious leader of the group shouts a derogatory slur. When Clarence doesn’t respond, the boy becomes agitated and yells, “Just wait ‘till after the game, Fag.”

 

Simple assault and intimidation are protected under Public Law #101-275. Clarence has obviously been targeted because of his sexual orientation, but does this victimization fall under the protection of the federal hate crimes law (18 U.S.C. Section 245) victims are protected if the crime happens when person is attending a public school or is at work or participating in one of the four other “federally protected activities.” Since the boys were at a school function, Clarence should be protected by the federal hate crime law.

 

In this instance, there were plenty of people around, but nothing was sad to stop the discrimination. In fact, there were more than a few snickers and “atta boy”’s throughout the crowd. It was clear that many people didn’t agree with Clarence’s lifestyle. The law says that Clarence should be protected. Our society’s ethical behavior also claims we should protect him. The reality, however, is those heterosexual individuals often do not want to act sympathetic toward homosexuals, for fear of being classified as gay themselves. Is there any rule to assist with that ethical challenge?

 

There can never be enough rules to meet every ethical challenge because ethical challenges are continually developing. Simple moral behavior states that we, as human beings, should help those in need, with our regard to their race, ethnicity, gender, religion, or sexual orientation. Unfortunately, reality proves that it will take more than laws to make this happen.

 

In order to address the ethical challenge of equal treatment of all people, we msut turn to the words of our forefathers: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness…” One cannot be happy when being persecuted and publicly humiliated because of his or her decisions in how they lead their life.

 

My responsibly is the same as that of the society, to allow everyone the right live how they please, and not be afraid to share it. One thing I can do is to respect the choices of the individuals around me and to allow people to harass someone like Clarence, simply because he or she is different. We are all different in many ways, but we are also all the same. We are all human beings with feeling and God given rights. It should always be against the law for anyone to take these rights away.

 

Click here for more information about the TWI Annual Ethics Essay Contest.