An ignorant southern politician puts her foot in her mouth, using faulty information to brand hate crimes bill a hoax.
According to court testimony, in the months leading up to October of 1998, Russell Henderson and Aaron McKinney lived with a friend named Tom O’Connor. Tom intimated to McKinney’s girlfriend that he’d had sex occasionally with her boyfriend, and thought he was bisexual. Despite O’Connor’s later sworn statements in court to the contrary, McKinney denied having sex with him. After months of suffering taunts and denials, McKinney became anxious to prove his macho manhood and decided that a good old-fashioned “fag bashing” might just fill the bill.…
Article comments
376 - Clavos
It came across as self-laudatory, however.
377 - Jet Gardner
No problem Roger, the vast majority of people around here take me the wrong way too.
378 - Jet Gardner
Should anyone be interested, "The Matthew Shepard Story" is on today at noon Eastern USA, on the Lifetime Movie Network...
379 - Jet Gardner
President Obama has pledged to pass the Matthew Shepard Hate crimes act tonight
380 - roger nowosielski
Congratulations, Jet.
Doesn't it have to go through Congress?
381 - Jet Gardner
It's already gone through the house and the senate is set to send it to president Obama's desk
382 - roger nowosielski
Great.
And forget about the other thing. It's just how I feel about the economic situation, that was no personal argument.
383 - Jet Gardner
CNN has just covered live his speech to the HRC tonight in which he pledge to end don't ask don't tell and a very stong no questions asked speech backing gay rights nationwide.
384 - Jet Gardner
I've gone off on a tangent and posted an article on my other love... astronomy. Specifically the gigantic ring around Saturn that's just been discovered
385 - Jet Gardner
Go ahead, read the description of this crime and tell me again how it's not a hate crime.
386 - Jet Gardner
President Obama signed into law the Matthew Shepard & James Byrd Jr. Hates Prevention Act during a White House signing ceremony on Wednesday.
The legislation expands the definition of federal hate crimes to include sexual orientation and gender identity.
“After more than a decade of opposition we passed inclusive hate crimes legislation to help protect our citizens from violence based on what they look like, who they love, how they pray or who they are,” Obama said before signing the bill.
387 - Glenn Contrarian
Good. Glad to see it.
388 - Jet Gardner
Having it's one thing Glenn, enforcing it's another... but I'm glad too
389 - Jet Gardner
Washington Post
Thursday, October 29, 2009
When a gay Wyoming college student was slain in 1998, congressional Democrats pledged to broaden the definition of federal hate crimes by the end of that year to include attacks based on sexual orientation.
The effort instead turned into a decade-long proxy war between liberal groups that want to expand gay rights and conservative groups that do not. But Wednesday, President Obama signed the bill and then hosted a White House reception for gay activists and the parents of the slain student, 21-year-old Matthew Shepard.
"After more than a decade of opposition and delay, we've passed inclusive hate crimes legislation to help protect our citizens from violence based on what they look like, who they love, how they pray or who they are," Obama said after the signing.
Washington Post
Thursday, October 29, 2009