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The Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Bill Passes in Senate Today, 10/22
By: Jessica Lewis Oct. 22, 2009
The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, legislation that will allow courts to investigate and take legal action against hate crimes where in the victim is targeted due to the person's actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability, passed in the Senate today by a margin of 68 to 29. The bill now awaits President Obama's review and signature.
The President has repeatedly voiced his support for the bill and is expected to sign within the next two weeks.
The Act derives its name from two of the most high profile victims of hate crimes: Matthew Shepard, who was chained to a fence and beaten to death for being gay in his hometown of Laramie Wyoming;and James Byrd Jr., an African-American man who was dragged to death by white supremacists in Jasper Texas in 1998.
The Matthew Shepard killing inspired the Tectonic Theatre Project's docudramas The Laramie Project and its sequel, The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later that have been performed internationally. The Laramie sequel recently got a nationwide premiere on October 12, the 11th anniversary of Shepard's death, by over 150 participating theaters that presented readings simultaneously.
Following his death, James Byrd Jr.'s family created the James Byrd Foundation for Racial Healing after his death. In 1999 Chantal Akerman made a film about the incident called Sud, a meditation on the events surrounding the crime and the history of racial violence in the United States. In 2003, another movie about the crime, titled Jasper, Texas, was produced and aired on Showtime. The same year, a documentary named Two Towns of Jasper, made by filmmakers Marco Williams and Whitney Dow, premiered on PBS's P.O.V. series
The Act will additionally allow the Justice Department to lead investigations of bias-motivated violent crimes that result in death or serious bodily injury when local authorities are unwilling or unable to do so.
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