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Howard Dean Applauds Senate Passage of Hate Crimes Bill

October 1, 2007

Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean today applauded the passage of the federal Hate Crimes bill in the U.S. Senate. The bill would provide equal protections for every American by extending the definition of hate crimes under federal law to include violence against a person because of his or her sexual orientation or gender identity, and provide local law enforcement agencies the resources to combat hate crimes. Dean issued the following statement:

"Today, the Democratic Senate joined the Democratic House in moving America one step closer to ensuring equal protection under the law for every American. Although one in six hate crimes are based on the victim's sexual orientation, today's federal laws do not protect Americans from crimes based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Today's vote corrects this, and makes a bold statement that hate is not an American value.

"Every American has a basic human right to live in dignity, free from persecution and violence. A person's sexual orientation or gender identity should not preclude them from this right, and our state and local law enforcement agencies must have the resources needed to enforce the law. I applaud Senator Kennedy for his steadfast leadership in protecting every American from hate-based violence. President Bush has a moral obligation to abandon his threat to veto this bill, and join Democrats in fighting for equal rights and protections under the law for every American."

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