HATE CRIMES LEGISLATION

The Matthew Shepard Foundation strongly supports the reintroduction of inclusive hate crimes legislation in the House of Representatives on March 20 and in the Senate on April 12. Titled the Matthew Shepard Act (formerly know as the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007), this bill is an appropriate and measured response to the unrelenting and under-addressed problem of violent hate crimes committed against individuals based on actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender, gender identity and disability.

We also urge you to sign the Erase Hate Petition to help support our efforts in "Replacing Hate with Understanding, Compassion & Acceptance!"

Judy & Dennis Shepard speak about the Matthew Shepard Act

BACKGROUND ON THE MATTHEW SHEPARD ACT:

The Matthew Shepard Act would strengthen existing federal hate crime laws in three ways:

1) Expand the law to authorize the Department of Justice to investigate and prosecute certain bias-motivated crimes based on the victim's actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, or disability. Current law only includes race, color, religion or national origin.

2) Eliminate a serious limitation on federal involvment under existing law which requires that a victim of a bias-motivated crime was attacked because he/she was engaged in a specified federally-protected activity such as voting, serving on a jury or attending school.

3) Add "gender" and "gender identity" to the Hate Crimes Statistics Act

For full details on the Matthew Shepard Act, please download the HRC One-Page Fact Sheet

OTHER RESOURCES:

Human Rights Campaign - Q&A on the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007

CivilRights.org - List of Supporting organizations for  the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007

Leadership Council on Civil Rights  - LLEHCPA Resource Page 

STATEMENTS & PRESS ON THE MATTHEW SHEPARD ACT

Matthew Shepard Foundation/HRC Press Release - 04/13/2007 - Shepard's Name on Hate Crimes Bill

Matthew Shepard Foundation/HRC Press Release - 04/12/2007 - Senators Kennedy and Smith Introduce Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act

Matthew Shepard Foundation Press Release - 03/21/2007 - Matthew Shepard Foundation Applauds the Reintroduction of Federal Hate Crimes Legislation in the House of Representatives

Op-Ed by Judy Shepard and Joe Solmonese - 03/06/2007 - For Victims, Their Families and OUr Community - Federal Hate Crimes Law Must Be Passed

JUDY & DENNIS SHEPARD TALK ABOUT THE MATTHEW SHEPARD ACT

A FATHER'S APPEAL - CHOOSE TO ACT Op Ed by Dennis Shepard Co-Founder of the Matthew Shepard Foundation "When my son Matthew was murdered nearly nine years ago, my family had a decision to make." "The legislation is simple: to protect people from being attacked, beaten, brutalized, and murdered because of who they are."

JUDY ON 'PBS NOW' Listen to Judy Shepard speak with Maria Hinojosa about the importance of the Matthew Shepard Act during an interview on PBS 'NOW on the News'.