April 14, 1999
EDITORIAL:
Remove the hate, reduce the crime
___Are some violent crimes more heinous than others? Is killing a person because of race, sexual orientation or religion worse, say, than murdering someone because you were drunk or he slept with your wife?
___Many Americans believe so. Numerous laws set aside so-called hate crimes for special punishment. These laws focus on the motive for the crime, such as the race/ethnicity, gender or disability of the victim.
___The murders of two gay men, Matthew Shepard and Billy Jack Gaither, shoved hate crimes into the national spotlight. While some states include sexual orientation as a criterion for hate crimes, many do not. The Texas Legislature is considering such a law this session.
___Just last week, President Clinton asked Congress to expand the federal definition of hate crimes to include offenses based on sexual orientation. "We have to be, in the United States, absolutely resolute about this," Clinton said. "Our diversity is a godsend for us. ... The No. 1 security threat to that is the persistence of old, even primitive, hatreds. ... We're talking about whether people have a right, if they show up and work hard and obey the law and are good citizens, to pursue their lives in dignity, free of fear."
___Clinton's call set off protest from Religious Right groups.
___"Potentially, those who hold religious or moral objections to homosexuality could be prosecuted for 'hate,'" warned Concerned Women for America.
___The heat of passion boils complex problems down to overly simple solutions. And while hate-crimes passions make blood boil, this situation refuses to simplify.
___On one hand, the president is right: No one deserves to be murdered because he is gay or she is a lesbian. This nation should be safe for all Americans, period.
___On the other hand, opponents of hate-crimes legislation express a legitimate concern: The First Amendment protects freedom of speech and religion, and hate-crime laws should not erode those freedoms.
___An example: Protesters outside a courthouse hold up signs proclaiming, "God hates fags." This message is abominable and antithetical to the message of Christ. Yet it is a direct expression of a congregation's religious beliefs. The rights of protest and religious expression must be protected, even if the message is misguided and the protest is reprehensible.
___Sensible citizens express concern about repercussions of hate-crimes legislation. Some fear that a pastor who preaches on the Apostle Paul's description of homosexual activity as sinful could be convicted of a hate crime. Some worry that Christians who try to "convert" homosexuals will themselves be convicted of harassment, or worse.
___Sensitive citizens also fear an increasingly intolerant nation. They worry about the safety of ethnic and religious minorities, homosexuals, the disabled and women. Of course, they want to set up safeguards.
___We need look no further than the news to view the full-blown consequences of hate. Kosovo, Serbia and the entire Balkans region is a time bomb of ethnic/religious bitterness. Yet their shortcomings, half a world away, are more comfortably identified than our own.
___Will America become another Balkans, factionalized into warring subgroups-- Baptists, Catholics and Mormons; gays and straights; African Americans, Anglos and Hispanics; the lame and the well?
___We need to find a way forward that protects all citizens, preserves freedom and promotes dignity.
___We must recognize that all violent crime is hate-inspired. The flaws in our judicial system do not flow from failure to protect distinct groups. They seep from our moral cesspool, which dehumanizes "different" people and downgrades violence.
___Still, of all people, Christians must protect minorities from hatred and harm. Jesus demonstrated love to ethnic and religious minorities, sinners, the weak. He is our model. Consequently, we must be concerned not only to "seek and save," but also to care for "the least of these."
___Whatever the law of the land, only love can drive out hate. Only good can overcome evil. Only light can defeat darkness.
___If we fail to speak truthfully and to act lovingly and redemptively, we risk participating in the balkanization of America.
___--Marv Knox
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