WASHINGTON – AAUW celebrates Senate passage of the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act (S. 909) Amendment, which was approved last night by a 63-28 vote. The measure, attached to the current Department of Defense authorization bill, would strengthen the federal response to hate crimes. The House passed a companion bill in April.
"AAUW has long been a leading voice for stronger laws to fight hate crimes," said AAUW Executive Director Linda D. Hallman, CAE. "It is imperative that we equip local law enforcement agencies with the tools needed to combat these often horrific crimes."
The amendment strengthens a federal law enacted in 1968 after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., that addresses violence based on race, ethnicity, and religion. It would add gender, sexual orientation, and disability to the list.
"The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act is necessary to ensure an appropriate response when local law authorities cannot or will not give gender-based hate-crime victims the protection they deserve," said Lisa Maatz, AAUW director of public policy and government relations. "It has been a long haul, but it's time for Congress to send this bill to President Obama and for him to sign it with all due haste."
AAUW has a long-standing commitment to stopping discrimination and violence in all forms and has been working with a broad coalition to expand hate crimes law.
