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A Push for Federal Help with Local Hate Crimes
December 30th, 2008

When José Sucuzhañay was attacked and murdered in Bushwick earlier this month because he was Latino and perceived as gay, local and international outrage ensued. Now, advocates are pushing for a federal response to local hate crimes, such as this incident.

A Hispanic civil rights group called the National Council of La Raza is advocating for passage of the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act.

The bill would provide federal assistance to states and localities with the investigation and prosecution of hate crimes, and increases the penalties for such crimes. Although it was passed by the House last year, it never made it out of committee in the Senate.

Council Speaker Christine Quinn introduced a resolution last year in support of the bill. After a series of amendments in various committees, the resolution was never brought to a vote. The state passed its hate crimes act in 2000.

Hate crimes against Latinos have skyrocketed nationally 40 percent since 2003, according to the FBI, while hate crimes against gays rose 6 percent last year. All this despite an overall drop in hate crimes of 1 percent. Last year in New York there were 493 hate crimes statewide and 295 citywide.

By Mike Muller on December 30, 2008, 9:34 am
In category: Civil Rights, Crime
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2 Responses to “A Push for Federal Help with Local Hate Crimes”

  1. BushwickBK.com » Is Stronger Hate Crimes Legislation Effective? Says:
    December 30th, 2008 at 12:45 pm

    [...] La Raza (NCLR), are advocating for passage of the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, according to the Gotham Gazette’s Wonkster blog. The law would increase penalties for hate crimes and boost federal funding to investigate [...]

  2. Karen Yung Says:
    January 3rd, 2009 at 12:40 am

    Hate crimes committed by police are the worst.
    My family was forced to flee Santa Clara, CA
    after warrant-less wiretaps ‘discovered’ our
    same-sex marriage. Political refugees FROM America are a growth market, say human rights
    groups. Can a black man in the White House defend equal rights by opposing same-sex marriages?

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