Posted on 09/30/2005 12:12:49 PM PDT by Anthem
WASHINGTON - The House of Representatives has approved a bill that includes a hate crimes amendment.
That could make preaching or teaching against homosexuality a federal crime. It has gotten almost no news coverage, but critics say it poses a major threat to religious liberties.
The Hate Crimes Amendment, by Michigan Democrat John Conyers, was attached to the Children's Safety Act last week. It would federalize local crimes if the suspected motive is animosity toward homosexuals or "transgender" persons.
The amendment, which passed with the help of 30 Republicans, seems to have taken conservatives by surprise.
Republican leaders explained that party members voted to pass the Child Safety Bill even with the amendment attached, because they wanted the protection of children, and they figured that the Hate Crimes Amendment would be stripped off when the joint House-Senate conference Committee tackles the bill.
But the Senate, which will now take up the legislation, has passed similar hate crimes bills several times, and those were always blocked by House conservatives.
Some fear that under the law, preaching or teaching against homosexual conduct could be prosecuted as conspiracy to commit a hate crime.
A similar state law in Pennsylvania led directly to the arrests of 11 Christians in Philadelphia in a public park last year, and the felony prosecution of five of those Christians. The charges were eventually dropped.
Some House members are confident that the amendment will be cleaned up in committee, but some fear the Senate will pass the hate crimes provision as is and send it to the President for his signature.
I hate "hate". It should be a crime. So should boredom. Outlaw it. I also don't like being annoyed. Outlaw that too. And don't get me started on Celine Dion ....
No, I didn't pursue that. Since it has passed the House and is now awaiting the Senate (either conference or amendment debate) it seems to me the first priority is to get Title X stripped out. Later we can ID the bad guys. You'll notice that I posted a dissent by Miller (R) Florida from the Congressional Record on one of the other threads linked above in my comments section. There were probably others who spoke against the Amendment, but in the end they punted to the Senate.
Queers get their own protection. Bullsh*t!
Oh, did someone start paying attention to the Constitution again? I didn't notice.
Dunno. Drove a Trans Am once upon a time. It could shift real fast.
Thought Police.
Congress makes the following findings:
~snip~
(6) Such violence substantially affects interstate commerce in many ways, including--
(A) by impeding the movement of members of targeted groups and forcing such members to move across State lines to escape the incidence or risk of such violence; and
(B) by preventing members of targeted groups from purchasing goods and services, obtaining or sustaining employment, or participating in other commercial activity.
(7) Perpetrators cross State lines to commit such violence.
(8) Channels, facilities, and instrumentalities of interstate commerce are used to facilitate the commission of such violence.
(9) Such violence is committed using articles that have traveled in interstate commerce.
This kind of crap just illustrates how useless the Republican majority has become.
Anything John Conyers put up should be put up to extreme scrutiny by republicans, no exceptions.
This could make reading from the Torah in a temple illegal.
That in itself skates pretty close to being a "hate crime."
Maybe a good reason why thought should not be regulated by law.
Do you happen to have the White House phone number handy (and maybe a Senate list)? I absolutely must get back to work. Regards,
I haven't given a dime to the Re-pubics since 2000. Why would I want to feel like I'm paying for this crap?
Good point.
So a 'transgender' person is someone who can shift from male to female in say, 6 seconds?
I thought transgendered meant an animal that was going off the endangered species list.
Nearly as pointless is calling the Senate. There should be a list available at http://www.senate.gov
Mr. Elk, it maybe time to charge once again.
Nearly as pointless is calling the Senate. There should be a list available at http://www.senate.gov
It depends on how much money you have or what your business is.
What is the difference between a "crime" and a "hate" crime?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.