Emmett Till Antilynching Act

Bill: 117-hr-55
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Rush, Bobby L. [D-IL-1]
Introduced: 2021-01-04
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement
Subjects: Hate crimes

Racial and ethnic relations

Sex offenses

Violent crime
Latest action: action_date: 2022-03-29
text: Became Public Law No: 117-107.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-01-04
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><b>Emmett Till Antilynching Act</b></p> <p>This bill specifies that an offense involving lynching is a hate crime act. A violator is subject to criminal penalties&#8212;a prison term, a fine, or both.</p>

action_date: 2022-02-25
action_desc: Reported to House
text: <p><strong>Emmett Till Antilynching Act</strong></p> <p>This bill makes lynching a federal hate crime offense. </p> <p>Specifically, the bill prohibits an individual from conspiring to commit a federal hate crime offense.</p> <p>A violation that results in death is punishable by a fine, a prison term of any years or for life, or both.</p> <p>In any other case, a violation is punishable by the same penalties as prescribed for the target offense of the conspiracy.<br> </p>

action_date: 2022-02-28
action_desc: Passed House
text: <p><strong>Emmett Till Antilynching Act</strong></p> <p>This bill makes lynching a federal hate crime offense.</p> <p>Specifically, the bill imposes criminal penalties&#8212;a fine, a prison term of up to 30 years, or both&#8212;on an individual who conspires to commit a hate crime offense that results in death or serious bodily injury or that includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill.</p>

action_date: 2022-03-07
action_desc: Passed Senate
text: <p><strong>Emmett Till Antilynching Act</strong></p> <p>This bill makes lynching a federal hate crime offense.</p> <p>Specifically, the bill imposes criminal penalties&#8212;a fine, a prison term of up to 30 years, or both&#8212;on an individual who conspires to commit a hate crime offense that results in death or serious bodily injury or that includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill.</p>

action_date: 2022-03-29
action_desc: Public Law
text: <p><strong>Emmett Till Antilynching Act</strong></p> <p>This bill makes lynching a federal hate crime offense.</p> <p>Specifically, the bill imposes criminal penalties&#8212;a fine, a prison term of up to 30 years, or both&#8212;on an individual who conspires to commit a hate crime offense that results in death or serious bodily injury or that includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill.</p>

tv_txt: I 117th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 55 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 4, 2021 Mr. Rush introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary A BILL To amend section 249 of title 18, United States Code, to specify lynching as a hate crime act.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Emmett Till Antilynching Act . 2. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) In the 20th century lynching occurred mostly in southern States by White southerners against Black southerners. (2) In 1892, the Tuskegee Institute began to record statistics of lynchings and reported that 4,742 reported lynchings had taken place by 1968, of which 3,445 of the victims were Black. (3) Most of the lynchings that occurred in the South were mass moblike lynchings. (4) Mass moblike lynchings were barbaric by nature characterized by members of the mob, mostly White southerners, shooting, burning, and mutilating the victim’s body, alive. (5) In Anatomy of a Lynching: The Killing of Claude Neal , community papers readily advertised mob lynchings, as evidenced by a Florida local paper headline: Florida to Burn Negro at Stake: Sex Criminal Seized from Brewton Jail, Will be Mutilated, Set Afire in Extra-Legal Vengeance for Deed. (6) Civil rights groups documented and presented Congress evidence of vigilante moblike lynchings. (7) Evidence by NAACP investigator Howard Kester documented the extreme brutality of these lynchings. An excerpt from Anatomy of a Lynching further illustrates this point: After taking the nigger to the woods about four miles from Greenwood, they cut off his penis. He was made to eat it. Then they cut off his testicles and made him eat them and say he liked it. (8) Many civil rights groups, notably the Anti-Lynching Crusaders, also known as the ALC, operating under the umbrella of the NAACP, made numerous requests to Congress to make lynching a Federal crime. (9) Congressman George Henry White, an African American, introduced the first Federal anti­lynching bill and subsequently nearly 200 anti-lynching bills were introduced in the Congress during the first half of the 20th century. (10) Between 1890 and 1952, seven Presidents petitioned Congress to end lynching. (11) Between 1920 and 1940, the House of Representatives passed three strong anti-lynching measures, of which Congress came closest to enacting anti-lynching legislation sponsored by Congressman Leonidas C. Dyer in 1922. (12) On all three occasions, opponents of anti-lynching legislation, argued States’ rights and used the filibuster, or the threat of it, to block the Senate from voting on the measures. (13) The enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 was the closest Congress ever came in the post-Reconstruction era to enacting anti-lynching legislation. (14) In 2005, the Senate passed a resolution, sponsored by Senators Mary Landrieu and George Allen, apologizing for the Senate’s failure to enact anti-lynching legislation as a Federal crime, with Senator Landrieu saying, There may be no other injustice in American history for which the Senate so uniquely bears responsibility. (15) To heal past and present racial injustice, Congress must make lynching a Federal crime so our Nation can begin reconciliation. 3. Specifying lynching as a hate crime act Section 249(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended— (1) by redesignating paragraph (4) as paragraph (5); and (2) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following: (4) Offenses involving lynching Whoever, whether or not acting under color of law, willfully, acting as part of any collection of people, assembled for the purpose and with the intention of committing an act of violence upon any person, causes death to any person, shall be imprisoned for any term of years or for life, fined under this title, or both. .

tv_txt: I 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 55 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AN ACT To amend section 249 of title 18, United States Code, to specify lynching as a hate crime act.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Emmett Till Antilynching Act . 2. Lynching; other conspiracies Section 249(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: (5) Lynching Whoever conspires to commit any offense under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) shall, if death or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 2246 of this title) results from the offense, be imprisoned for not more than 30 years, fined in accordance with this title, or both. (6) Other conspiracies Whoever conspires to commit any offense under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) shall, if death or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 2246 of this title) results from the offense, or if the offense includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, be imprisoned for not more than 30 years, fined in accordance with this title, or both. . 3. Determination of budgetary effects The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by reference to the latest statement titled Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

Passed the House of Representatives February 28, 2022. Cheryl L. Johnson, Clerk.

tv_txt: IB Union Calendar No. 181 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 55 [Report No. 117–251] IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES January 4, 2021 Mr. Rush introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary February 25, 2022 Additional sponsors: Ms. Eshoo , Ms. Omar , Mr. Auchincloss , Mrs. Axne , Ms. Barragán , Mrs. Beatty , Mr. Bishop of Georgia , Ms. Blunt Rochester , Ms. Bonamici , Mr. Bowman , Mr. Brown of Maryland , Mrs. Bustos , Mr. Butterfield , Mr. Carson , Mr. Cartwright , Mr. Casten , Ms. Castor of Florida , Mr. Cicilline , Ms. Clark of Massachusetts , Ms. Clarke of New York , Mr. Connolly , Mr. Cooper , Mr. Costa , Ms. Craig , Mr. Danny K. Davis of Illinois , Ms. Dean , Mr. DeFazio , Ms. DelBene , Mrs. Demings , Mrs. Dingell , Mr. Michael F. Doyle of Pennsylvania , Mr. Espaillat , Mr. Evans , Mr. Foster , Mr. Gallego , Mr. Garamendi , Mr. García of Illinois , Mr. Green of Texas , Mr. Grijalva , Mr. Hastings , Mrs. Hayes , Mr. Higgins of New York , Ms. Jackson Lee , Mr. Jeffries , Ms. Johnson of Texas , Mr. Johnson of Georgia , Mr. Jones , Ms. Kaptur , Ms. Kelly of Illinois , Mr. Kildee , Mr. Kilmer , Mr. Krishnamoorthi , Mr. Larson of Connecticut , Ms. Lee of California , Mr. Lowenthal , Mrs. Luria , Mrs. Carolyn B. Maloney of New York , Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New York , Ms. McCollum , Mr. McGovern , Ms. Meng , Ms. Moore of Wisconsin , Mr. Nadler , Mrs. Napolitano , Ms. Newman , Ms. Norton , Mr. O'Halleran , Mr. Pallone , Mr. Panetta , Mr. Pappas , Mr. Payne , Mr. Peters , Ms. Pingree , Mr. Pocan , Mr. Price of North Carolina , Mr. Quigley , Mr. Raskin , Miss Rice of New York , Ms. Roybal-Allard , Mr. Ryan , Ms. Sánchez , Mr. Sarbanes , Ms. Scanlon , Ms. Schakowsky , Mr. Schrader , Ms. Sewell , Mr. Sires , Mr. Smith of Washington , Ms. Speier , Ms. Stevens , Mr. Suozzi , Mr. Swalwell , Mr. Takano , Mr. Thompson of Mississippi , Ms. Tlaib , Mr. Tonko , Mr. Torres of New York , Mrs. Trahan , Mrs. Watson Coleman , Mr. Welch , Ms. Williams of Georgia , Ms. Wilson of Florida , Mr. Yarmuth , Mr. Ruppersberger , Mrs. Lawrence , Mrs. Kirkpatrick , Mr. Soto , Mr. Cárdenas , Mr. Neguse , Mr. Cuellar , Ms. Ross , Mr. Lynch , Mr. Larsen of Washington , Mr. Thompson of California , Ms. Manning , Ms. Jayapal , Ms. Adams , Mr. Schneider , Mr. Veasey , Ms. Wild , Mr. Aguilar , Mr. Meeks , Mr. Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania , Mr. Moulton , Ms. Underwood , Mr. Carbajal , Mr. Vela , Mr. Kahele , Mr. Vargas , Mr. Blumenauer , Mr. Horsford , Mrs. Fletcher , Mr. San Nicolas , Ms. Wexton , Mr. Stanton , Mr. Gomez , Ms. Spanberger , Ms. Matsui , Mr. Phillips , Ms. Bass , Mr. Mrvan , Ms. Garcia of Texas , Ms. Bourdeaux , Mr. Scott of Virginia , Mr. Mfume , Ms. Jacobs of California , Mr. Keating , Ms. Kuster , Mr. Kim of New Jersey , Ms. Waters , Mr. Cleaver , Ms. DeGette , Mr. Morelle , Ms. Houlahan , Ms. Wasserman Schultz , Mr. McNerney , Mr. Khanna , Mr. Delgado , Ms. Bush , Mr. Kind , Mr. McEachin , Mr. DeSaulnier , Ms. Slotkin , Mrs. McBath , Mr. Lieu , Ms. Strickland , Ms. Velázquez , Ms. Schrier , Ms. Lois Frankel of Florida , Mr. Himes , Mr. Langevin , Mr. David Scott of Georgia , Ms. Stansbury , Mr. Gohmert , Mr. Huffman , Mr. Cohen , Mr. Lawson of Florida , Ms. Brown of Ohio , Mr. Lamb , Ms. Titus , and Mr. Levin of Michigan February 25, 2022 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on January 4, 2021 A BILL To amend section 249 of title 18, United States Code, to specify lynching as a hate crime act.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Emmett Till Antilynching Act . 2. Lynching; other conspiracies Section 249(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: (5) Lynching; other conspiracies Whoever conspires to commit any offense under paragraph (1), (2), or (3), shall— (A) if death results from the offense, be imprisoned for any term of years or for life, fined in accordance with this title, or both; or (B) in any other case, be subject to the same penalties as the penalties prescribed for the offense the commission of which was the object of the conspiracy. .

February 25, 2022 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed

tv_txt: I One Hundred Seventeenth Congress of the United States of America At the Second Session Begun and held at the City of Washington on Monday, the third day of January, two thousand and twenty-two H. R. 55 AN ACT To amend section 249 of title 18, United States Code, to specify lynching as a hate crime act.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Emmett Till Antilynching Act . 2. Lynching; other conspiracies Section 249(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: (5) Lynching Whoever conspires to commit any offense under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) shall, if death or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 2246 of this title) results from the offense, be imprisoned for not more than 30 years, fined in accordance with this title, or both. (6) Other conspiracies Whoever conspires to commit any offense under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) shall, if death or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 2246 of this title) results from the offense, or if the offense includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, be imprisoned for not more than 30 years, fined in accordance with this title, or both. . 3. Determination of budgetary effects The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by reference to the latest statement titled Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

Speaker of the House of Representatives. Vice President of the United States and President of the Senate.

tv_txt: II 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 55 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES March 1, 2022 Received AN ACT To amend section 249 of title 18, United States Code, to specify lynching as a hate crime act.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Emmett Till Antilynching Act . 2. Lynching; other conspiracies Section 249(a) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: (5) Lynching Whoever conspires to commit any offense under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) shall, if death or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 2246 of this title) results from the offense, be imprisoned for not more than 30 years, fined in accordance with this title, or both. (6) Other conspiracies Whoever conspires to commit any offense under paragraph (1), (2), or (3) shall, if death or serious bodily injury (as defined in section 2246 of this title) results from the offense, or if the offense includes kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, be imprisoned for not more than 30 years, fined in accordance with this title, or both. . 3. Determination of budgetary effects The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by reference to the latest statement titled Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

Passed the House of Representatives February 28, 2022. Cheryl L. Johnson, Clerk.