The daughter of an African-American man who was brutally killed last month in Texas testified Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee as it deliberated an expansion of federal hate crime laws. Renee Mullins, whose father James Byrd Jr., died when he was dragged behind a truck outside of Jasper, Texas, spoke before the committee in support of the proposed Hate Crime Prevention Act of 1998. Mullins fought back tears as she talked about her father's violent death. Three men have been arrested in the case.
All humans have a right to live.
No one but the good Lord has the authority to take you away. Passing this bill into law would give some mercy for my family and for the families of future victims of such horrible crimes. The legislation would also amend the existing criminal code to eliminate current restrictions on prosecution, allocate funds for local and state anti-hate crime programs and direct the United States Sentencing Commission to study adult recruitment of juveniles to commit hate crimes. Currently, prosecutors must show that the victim of the hate crime was harmed at least in part because he or she was participating in a federally protected activity such as voting in order to prosecute the crime as a federal offense. Congress can do its part by strengthening the federal laws against these vicious crimes.