Tammy Baldwin: “on this 2-year anniversary of the brutal dragging death of James Byrd, I rise to ask congressional leaders to let us…”

“on this 2-year anniversary of the brutal dragging death of James Byrd, I rise to ask congressional leaders to let us vote on the Hate Crimes Prevention Act before we adjourn this year. Hate crimes are meant to instill fear and that fear is not only targeted at the immediate victim of the crime, the fear is experienced by all members of the group. Hate crimes are different from other violent crimes because they seek to terrorize an entire community. This sort of domestic terrorism demands a strong Federal response, because this country was founded on the premise that a person should be free to be who they are without fear of violence. I know that hate crime bills cannot cure the hate that still resides within some in our country. But this legislation can provide more protection for victims and send an important message that hate crimes against any group are a serious national problem. Let us pass the Hate Crimes Prevention Act this year.”