HR 1592 - Hate Crime Bill Passes & Paves the Path for CensorshipARRA Reposts on Arkansas Congressional Delegation (Updated)

Tony Perkins, FRC: Today, the House of Representatives took a further step towards dismantling the U.S. Constitution by passing H.R. 1592, the so-called "hate crimes" bill, 237 to 180. The legislation isolates people in different groups, then rewards and punishes these different groups using a separate standard from the one that applies to everyone else. "All men are created equal" is a principle that brave men and women have died for, and the failure to honor this principle nearly split this nation apart during the Civil War. One outcome of that war was passage of the 14th Amendment, which reads in part, "No state shall . . . deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

Earlier this morning, President Bush's senior staff released a statement citing these and other reasons to encourage him to veto the bill. If anyone doubts that the ultimate goal of legislation like H.R. 1592 is to stifle free speech, especially the speech of Christians, then consider these chilling words from supporter Rep. James McGovern (D-MA) during the debate today: "Sadly this bill does not go after speech."

Bishop Harry Jackson of the High Impact Leadership Coalition just prior to the vote on the hate crimes bill eloquently described how this legislation paves the way toward censoring pastors and decried the hijacking of the civil rights movement by advocates of homosexual behavior. In the lead-up to today's vote, . . . (supporters) tried to defend this bill's establishment of a two-tier system of justice in our country, they carefully avoided addressing our central argument that the bill paves the way for censorship. FRC has carefully documented the stories where similar laws have been used to intimidate and censor Christians - peaceful expressions of opposition to homosexual behavior have resulted in arrests and prosecutions around the world, in Sweden, England, and Canada. And it has already happened here at home in Philadelphia.
As the bill goes to the Senate, please urge your senators to vote "no." Also please encourage President Bush to listen to his advisers and veto any such measure should it reach his desk.

ARRA Editorial Comment On Arkansas US Congressional Delegation (updated 5/4 - Vote Recorded): U.S. Rep Vic Snyder (D-Dist 2) co-sponsored of the legislation. Snyder continues to align himself with the extreme liberal leadership and has lost touch with the values of a "majority" of Arkansans citizens be they Democrats, Republicans or Independents. U.S. Rep John Boozman (R-Dist 3) voted against the bill. In a press release, Boozman said, “... this bill does not grant equality to anyone. Instead, it grants special status to certain victims over others – which is something I cannot support. In a bow to special interests, the House leadership is attempting to create a new federal ‘thought crime. The concept of ‘thought crime’ is a dangerous one, and this bill places us on a slippery slope where you could one day find members of the clergy called to the stand to defend their words delivered from the pulpit. A crime is a crime, regardless of the thought behind it, and crime should be prosecuted to its fullest extent - which should be equal for all.” Updated Info: Representatives Marion Berry (D-Dist 1) and Mike Ross (D-Dist 4) joined Snyder in voting voted for the bill.

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Tags: Bishop Harry Jackson, FRC, Hate Crimes Act, homosexual activism, John Boozman, Marion Berry, Mike Ross, Tony Perkins, US House, Vic Snyder To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. Thanks!