[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 157 (Wednesday, November 14, 2001)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2077]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




H.R. 1343, THE LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT HATE CRIMES PREVENTION ACT OF 2001

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                       HON. STEPHANIE TUBBS JONES

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, November 14, 2001

  Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the 
Muslims, Sikhs or persons of Middle Eastern and South Asian descent. As 
you know, since September 11, there have been numerous reports of 
violent assaults, harassment, and threats against men, women and 
children targeted solely because of their religious beliefs, ethnicity 
or nationality. An urgent, vigorous response is required to stop these 
shameful crimes.
  State governments and local police need the tools to fight and 
prosecute these crimes. H.R. 1343, The Local Law Enforcement Hate 
Crimes Prevention Act of 2001 gives the State and local authorities the 
tools and federal assistance they need. We must elevate the status of 
hate crimes within federal law to ensure that the punishment fits the 
seriousness of the crime committed.
  Significant gaps still exist in protecting all Americans from hate-
motivated crimes. The Hate Crimes Prevention Act (HCPA) would 
strengthen existing hate crime law in two primary ways: first, it would 
extend the protection of hate crimes law to those who are victimized 
because of their gender, sexual orientation or disability; second, it 
would remove unnecessary judicial impediments to prosecuting hate-based 
violence.
  Monitoring groups, such as the Council on American-Islamic Relations, 
have received several hundred complaints alleging retaliatory attacks 
against Muslims, Arab Americans, South Asians and others. A shooting 
rampage in Mesa, Arizona, left one Sikh man dead, with additional shots 
fired at a Lebanese clerk and the home of an Afghan family. An 
Egyptian-American grocer was shot and killed near his store in San 
Gabriel, California, and a storeowner from Pakistan was shot dead in 
Dallas, Texas.
  Beatings and other violent assaults were reported across the country, 
as were death and bomb threats. At several U.S. universities, foreign 
students from the Middle East and South Asia have been targeted for 
attacks, and some have chosen to leave the country because they feared 
additional attacks. Mosques and Sikh temples have been shot at, 
vandalized, and defaced. A man in Parma, Ohio drove his car into a 
Mosque. Throughout the country affected, community members have been 
afraid to leave their homes, go to work or wear traditional clothing 
for fear of possible hate crimes against them.
  The horrific terrorist attacks of September 11 have forced the people 
of the US to confront a number of terribly difficult decisions: Should 
the US respond to the assaults with its own attack, or should we refuse 
to fight violence with violence? How should the nation balance its 
desire for freedom with its need for security? And how can we best 
maintain our commitment to diversity and tolerance and not let 
scapegoating tear the nation apart?
  I rise today to reiterate my support for the H.R. 1343, The Local Law 
Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2001. I urge people around 
the United States to reaffirm their commitment to peace, justice, and 
tolerance during this traumatic time. Retaliation will offer no 
consolation. The architects of the September 11 attacks must be 
apprehended and brought to justice in full compliance. And persons who 
commit hate crimes must be apprehended and brought to justice as well.

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