Why GOP Leader Opposes Hate Crimes Protections for Gays

Last week, House Republican Leader John Boehner objected to House passage of a bill that would expand hate crime laws and make it a federal crime to assault people on the basis of their sexual orientation.

"All violent crimes should be prosecuted vigorously, no matter what the circumstance," he said. "The Democrats' 'thought crimes' legislation, however, places a higher value on some lives than others. Republicans believe that all lives are created equal, and should be defended with equal vigilance."

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"He does not support adding sexual orientation to the list of protected classes," Smith continued.

Boehner's position, then, appears to be grounded in the notion that immutable characteristics should be protected under hate crimes laws. And while religion is an immutable characteristic, his office suggests, sexual orientation is not.

Northeastern University professor Jack Levin, who co-authored the first book written about hate crimes, told Hotsheet that "to use immutability as a criterion doesn't make any sense at all."

"Especially if he supports the current stand," Levin continued. "Religion is clearly not ascribed. It's not built into the organism. People can change it at any time and people do."

"It sounds to me as though the criticism is focused on the addition of gays and lesbians to the list of protected categories at the federal level," he said. "That seems to be the problem."

http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2009/10/13/politics/politicalhotsheet/entry5381671.shtml

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So let me get this straight(Pun Intended) Boehner, you CHOOSE to be gay but you Can't CHOOSE a religion...what about people that flipflop on religion like most Americans through their life..... Right Wing FAIL!

With all of the things going on in the World can't we just stop persecuting homosexuality, and take the correct stance on Nature vs Nurture......which is WE DON'T KNOW and stop pushing our own agenda's on it..... Allow Marriage, Allow Rights, and leave it at that, isn't it 2009?

Teens charged in fatal beating of Mexican immigrant

PORT CARBON, Pennsylvania (AP) --

Three white teens were charged Friday in what officials said was an epithet-filled fatal beating of an illegal Mexican immigrant in a small northeast Pennsylvania coal town.

Brandon J. Piekarsky, 16, and Colin J. Walsh, 17, were charged as adults with homicide and ethnic intimidation in the July 12 attack on Luis Ramirez.

A third teen, Derrick M. Donchak, 18, was charged with aggravated assault, ethnic intimidation and other offenses. All are from Shenandoah, where the attack occurred.
Ramirez, 25, was beaten to death after an argument with a group of youths that police said included high school football players. Authorities could not immediately say whether any of the suspects were members of the team, but they confirmed that all three used ethnic slurs during the fight.

"As a result of this crime, a young man has lost his life. Many other lives have been devastated, and the borough of Shenandoah has been filled with tensions between many ethnic groups," Schuylkill County District Attorney James Goodman said.
"Now that the criminal charges have been filed, we must let this case be handled in the criminal justice system," he said.

Police said that as many as six teens were involved in the fight, which ended with Ramirez in convulsions and foaming at the mouth. He died July 14 of head injuries.

Crystal Dillman, the victim's 24-year-old fiancee, who is white and grew up in Shenandoah, has said Ramirez was often called derogatory names, including "dirty Mexican," and told to return to his homeland.

"I plan on moving out of this town as fast as I can. Not because I'm scared. I just don't want to see my children have to deal with what their father dealt with," Dillman said.
Piekarsky and Walsh were being held without bail, while Donchak was held in lieu of $75,000 bail.

Lawyers for Piekarsky and Walsh said that their clients were not guilty and that there was no evidence to support the homicide charges. They also said they would try to have the case removed to juvenile court.

Donchak declined comment.

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Now is the time for people to come together, we hear alot about hate crimes WHITE vs. BLACK.

For all of the people that take such offense to those issues let's see your response to another minority hate crime?

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere." ~Martin Luther King Jr.,
Letter from Birmingham Jail, April 16, 1963US black civil rights leader & clergyman (1929 - 1968)

Newark Hospital Hazing????

http://www.nj.com/starledger/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-13/1215837310188710.xml&coll=1
A UMDNJ paramedic, identified by university officials as Timothy Prahm, adjusts sheets draped over two Northeastern University students working this summer at University Hospital in Newark. Prahm and two other UMDNJ paramedics have been fired, and university officials say an investigation into the July 6 incident continues.

In today's day and age I am not shocked at the mindset of racist or biased people. What I am shocked with is the fact that anyone in this day and age would even attempt to get away with such a blatant act of the sort. This happening in the middle of a predominately black city once called the "chocolate city" is appalling......

I mean really with cameras on phones, and everything being caught on tape this is just sad........

No one learned from; Michael Richardson, Don Imus, Geraldine Ferraro and the list goes on. If you are planning to think your comments/actions will go unnoticed then you are more ignorant then your own personal ideas of biased-ness....

Just recently, a longtime Washington talk-show host John McLaughlin was facing fire Monday for referring to Barack Obama as an "Oreo" during a segment on his Sunday political program, "The McLaughlin Group.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/07/14/mclaughlin-takes-heat-for-oreo-comment/

Just last year college students threw a party that was specifically for politically incorrect costumes.... [http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-02-11-offensive-college-party_x.htm].

In 2006 John Hopkins chapter of Sigma Chi through a "Halloween in the Hood" Party promoted on Facebook....

http://www.examiner.com/a-371271~Johns_Hopkins_fraternity_suspended_after_racially_themed_Halloween_party.html

“The invitation to the Saturday night party, posted on the Web site Facebook, described Baltimore as “the hiv pit” and encouraged attendees to wear “regional clothing from our locale” such as “bling bling ice ice, grills,” and “hoochie hoops.”
“A picture of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice accompanied the posted invitation, BSU members said.”” “ps we STILL don’ discriminate against hoodrats, skig skags, or scallywhops,” it read.”The Baltimore Sun reports that Johns Hopkins Black Student Union is protesting the behavior of the white fraternity linked to this Halloween Hood Party. I know want to address the comments readers left on the Baltimore Sun message board.

This is something that systematically occurs throughout our culture and others..... For some education on this I suggest reading...


http://www.africanbookstore.net/

With people running around that still to this day don't see the problems with what they have or are doing we have to be more careful not to give them ammunition in the form of satire that obviously is way over their heads, as they wont get it and will try to justify their own actions based on it.