[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 138 (Wednesday, October 13, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H9905-H9906]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 THE HATE CRIMES PREVENTION ACT OF 1999

  (Mr. CROWLEY asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. CROWLEY. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to rise today and speak in favor

[[Page H9906]]

of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 1999, which is cosponsored by 
myself and 184 of my colleagues.
  Recently our country was shocked once again when a gunman entered a 
Jewish community center in Los Angeles, California, shooting at 
innocent children and workers with the intent of sending a message by 
killing Jews.
  Last year in Laramie, Wyoming, a young man was killed only because he 
was gay. In Texas, an innocent man was murdered and dragged through the 
streets of Jasper just because he was an African-American. All of these 
incidents are hate crimes, and these do not just affect the group that 
was killed, but they affect all Americans.
  I believe the Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 1999 is a constructive 
and measured response to a problem that continues to plague our Nation, 
violence motivated by prejudice.
  I know some people believe that hate is not an issue when prosecuting 
a crime. They say our laws already punish the criminal act and that our 
laws are strong enough. I answer with the most recent figure from 1997, 
when 8,049 hate crimes were reported in the United States.

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