[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Pages 5803-5804]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    THE MATTHEW SHEPARD ACT OF 2007

  Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, I wish to speak about the need for hate 
crimes legislation. Each Congress, Senator Kennedy and I introduce hate 
crimes legislation that would strengthen and add new categories to 
current hate crimes law, sending a signal that violence of any kind is 
unacceptable in our society. Likewise, each Congress I have come to the 
floor to highlight a separate hate crime that has occurred in our 
country.
  Early in the morning of September 3, 2007, Andrew Geske and a friend 
were walking home in the Capitol Hill area of Seattle, WA, when a black 
BMW pulled up alongside of them. According to Geske, he and his friend 
stopped walking when the car slowed down, assuming it was an 
acquaintance of theirs. When the car came to a halt, the driver burst 
out of the car, hurling anti-gay epithets at Geske and punching him in 
the face repeatedly. Reeling from the attack, Geske's arm fell through 
the passenger side window, where another attacker grabbed onto it. The 
driver then got back in the car and sped off with Geske's arm still 
trapped. The victim was dragged several blocks before he broke free, 
suffering scrapes and sprained fingers in the process. The attack is 
being investigated as a bias crime and the assailants are still at 
large.
  I believe that the Government's first duty is to defend its citizens, 
to defend them against the harms that come out of hate. Federal laws 
intended to protect individuals from heinous and violent crimes 
motivated by hate are woefully inadequate. This legislation would 
better equip the Government to fulfill its most important obligation by

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protecting new groups of people as well as better protecting citizens 
already covered under deficient laws. I believe that by passing this 
legislation and changing current law, we can change hearts and minds as 
well.

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