Comments on: FBI hate crimes report: disturbing trends against Hispanics and gays

By: The Unapologetic Mexican

The Unapologetic Mexican — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 15:08:38 +0000

¿NPR as KGB?…

During questioning in the Democratic radio debate yesterday, debate sponsor NPR came dangerously close to promoting civilian pursuit of immigrants. The New York Times summed up NPR’s questioning in this way, ‘If there is one issue that has chall…

By: NPR CROSSES DANGEROUS RACIAL BORDER: ASKS CANDIDATES IF CITIZENS SHOULD “TURN IN” IMMIGRANTS « Of América

Wed, 05 Dec 2007 09:22:10 +0000

[...] Yesterday’s questioning of the Democratic Presidential candidates seems to indicate that NPR is willing to provide a broader forum for formerly fringe ideas. Public airing of such questions will only exacerbate racial tensions against Latino and other migrants that even the FBI tells us are the object of increasing numbers of hate crimes. [...]

By: David W. Shelton

David W. Shelton — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:08:16 +0000

I wanted to share what someone wrote to me about this article:

Hello. I just read your article on the FBI report detailing increased hate crime rates against LBGT and Hispanics (I followed the link from buzzflash.com).

I am writing to ask your consideration of one very important issue in your coverage. When people say that hate crimes are caused by a person’s sexual orientation, race, religion, etc, they blame the victims for causing the very harm they suffer.

Mr. Shelton, Matthew Shepard did not die because he was gay, but because a few young, straight men acted on their fears and hatred. Likewise, James Byrd was not killed because he was black, but because white supremacists acted on their distorted beliefs.

Consequently, when you write, “Three of those crimes were due to a person’s race, four were attacks based on religion, two were motivated by the victim’s sexual orientation, and one was bias against the person’s ethnicity,” you are accurate only on the last count.

Violence is not due to racial identity, religious affiliation, sexual orientation or ethnicity. Violence occurs when people choose to act on their prejudices, fears and hatred.

Please remember that the cause of a hate crime is hate, not the identity of the person or people targeted.

Thoughts?