Discrimination and Hate Crimes - 1235 Words

From what I have identified on hate crimes in my research, the top two motivations for hate crimes are based on race and sexual orientation, â€Å"In 2010’s FBI report, of the 7,690 reported incidents, 48. 4 percent of the crimes were racially motivated attacks, with sexual orientation bias coming in second at 19.1 percent.† (DL Chandler,2010) Two of the best examples of these crimes are the James Byrd and Mathew Shepard cases in 1998. These crimes prompted the enactment of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act that was signed by President Barack Obama in 2009. Although the crimes are both very horrific and morbid acts in their own right, they were based on different types of hate racial and homophobia. The James Byrd Case was racially motivated†¦show more content†¦Byrd died after his right arm and head were severed after his body hit a culvert. His body had caught a sewage drain on the side of the road, resulting in his decapitation.† (HRC 2014) Police f ound parts of his body all over that three miles of road the suspects were found shortly after the discovery of his body. CNN reported â€Å"All three suspects have prison records, and authorities have said that at least two have the tattoos of white racist prison gangs. Racist literature also was seized from their homes.† (CNN 1998) These two men were John King (King) and Lawrence Brewer (Brewer)and later they were found to be active members of white supremacist groups such as Aryan Pride, KKK. Tattooed on their bodies were riddled with racist and Nazi symbols as well as gang symbols with well known racist gangs. The third guy, Shawn Berry ( Berry), didnt have the racist background and was determined not to be racist in court and because of his cooperation as a witness to the crime was given a lesser sentence. Shawn Berry, was charged with murder and given a life sentence for his part in the murder; Brewer, and King were both tried on capital murder and were sentenced to the death penalty. Brewer died by lethal injection in September of 2011, his last words before his execution were, â€Å"I feel no remorse and would do it all over again.† (DL Chandler 2012). King is still exhausting his appeals but is still on death row in Texas. This case is veryShow MoreRelatedEssay on hate crimes661 Words   |  3 Pages Defining Hate Crimes Hate crimes has become an increasing problem here in the united states ranging from racial hatred to gender discrimination but what are hate crimes? According to Dr. Jack McDevitt, a criminologist at Northeastern University in Boston Hate crimes are message crimes, Hate crimes are defined as crimes that are violent act against people, property, or organizations because of the group to which they belong or identify with. The coined term â€Å"hate crimes† was first used No matterRead MoreCauses of Psychological Trauma and Its Effects on Young Arab Americans Post 9/111066 Words   |  5 PagesAccording to the report of FBI(2000), the number of anti-islamic hate crime incidents prior the terrorist attacks were 28. In the immediate year after 9/11, 481 incidents were reported against the Muslims and Arabs(FBI 2002). The hate crime statistics of FBI conforms a staggering increase of 1617 percent in such a short period of time. The Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) reported that over 700 violent incidents were ruthlessly targeted against Arab Americans within the first 9 weeks afterRead MoreConservatism, By Moises Kaufman And The Tectonic Theater Project1722 Words   |  7 Pagesconservative community that refuses to acknowledge its mistakes and to change even after the death of a man. I began my research to discover why a community, so set on its beliefs, denies its complicity in insinuating a hate crime. 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The statistics show the percentages of the hate discrimination against the lesbian, gay, bisexual and tra nssexual community. The violence that they are pitted against, due to peoples discrimination against them, in life. And I will also mention the discrimination that the LGBT communityRead MoreHate Crime Essay1660 Words   |  7 PagesThe term hate crime developed in the early 1980s by reporters and government officials such as John Conyers and Mario Biaggi. Even though the interest of hate crimes has increased in recent developments, it has deep historic roots that dates back into time. Statistics of U.S. history has shown that assaults, murders, and acts of vandalism has stemmed from hatred. The first hate crime victims were Native Americans and since then almost all U.S. immigrants have been exposed to violence, discriminationRead MoreEssay On Matthew Shepard Hate Crime1189 Words   |  5 PagesShepard Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The purpose of this act was to â€Å"provide Federal assistance to States, local jurisdictions, and Indian tribes to prosecute hate crimes† (Ken nedy, 2009 p.1). Assistance other than financial assistance, in general, at the request of State, local or, tribal law enforcement agency, the Attorney General may provide technical, forensic, prosecutorial, or any other form of assistance in the criminal investigation or prosecution of any crime that , constitutes a crime of violence;Read MoreThe Fight Against Hate1268 Words   |  6 Pagesnight in near freezing weather because he was gay. These two attacks sent outrage throughout the country and inspired tougher punishments against hate crimes. (A hate crime is any crime that is committed due to a bias towards a particular group of people.) Currently, forty states and the District of Columbia have passed hate crime laws. Those laws ban any crime connected to bias based on gender, race, origin, sexual orientation, disability, or religion. Only nineteen of those states, however, have lawsRead MoreThe Prevention Of Violence And Discrimination Based On Sexual Orientation And Gender I dentity1713 Words   |  7 PagesCommittee: GA3 - The Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee Issue: The prevention of violence and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity Student Officer: Sarah Lim Position: Chair of the Social, Humanitarian and Cultural Committee ________________________________________ Introduction: Gender identity and sexual orientation is one of the more stigmatized and marginalized aspects of self-expression for any human in our society today. A state or country with a more liberal