[ti:Gays and Disabled Are Now Protected Under Hate Crimes Law in US] [ar:Bob Doughty] [al: IN THE NEWS] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is IN THE NEWS [00:05.33]in VOA Special English. [00:08.62]This week, President Obama signed [00:11.90]an expansion of federal law [00:14.21]on hate crimes. [00:15.74]Such laws provide more [00:18.29]investigative resources [00:20.04]or longer sentences, or both, [00:23.27]for crimes driven by prejudice. [00:26.41]Until now, federal law has covered [00:30.39]crimes based on a victim's race, [00:32.88]color, religion or national origin. [00:36.86]Congress first acted [00:40.38]in nineteen sixty-eight [00:42.28]after the murder of civil rights [00:44.97]leader Martin Luther King. [00:47.22]Now, after years of effort [00:50.49]by gay rights groups and others, [00:53.17]the law will include sexual orientation. [00:57.36]And it will extend protection [01:00.30]to those victimized because [01:02.39]of their gender [01:03.78]or gender identity or a disability. [01:07.92]The newact passed by Congress [01:10.90]is named for two victims of hate crimes. [01:14.73]Matthew Shepard was a gay [01:17.88]college student murdered in Wyoming [01:21.01]in nineteen ninety-eight. [01:23.40]That same year, three white men [01:26.59]in Texas beat a black man, [01:29.23]James Byrd Junior, and pulled him [01:33.02]to his death behind a truck. [01:36.00]Democrats attached the new [01:37.95]hate crimes legislation [01:39.65]to a major defense bill [01:42.04]that had to be passed. [01:44.25]Republicans wanted to consider it separately. [01:48.35]John Boehner, the minority leader [01:51.31]in the House of Representatives, [01:53.45]called it "thought crimes" legislation [01:56.67]and "radical social policy." [02:00.00]In a statement, he said [02:02.35]"all violent crimes should be [02:05.20]prosecuted vigorously." [02:07.15]The legislation, he said, [02:09.45]"places a higher value [02:11.70]on some lives than others." [02:14.06]Most of the states also have some form [02:17.56]of laws of their own dealing [02:19.80]with hate crimes. [02:21.21]More than seven thousand six hundred [02:24.46]incidents were reported nationwide [02:27.24]in two thousand seven, [02:29.30]the most recent year available. [02:32.11]Seventeen percent were linked [02:34.82]to sexual orientation. [02:37.23]Frederick Lawrence is a dean [02:39.87]at George Washington University Law School. [02:43.28]He says the United States has been [02:46.52]somewhat of a leader [02:48.31]in passing hate crimes legislation. [02:51.27]Now such laws are becoming [02:54.07]more common internationally. [02:56.27]They take different forms [02:59.22]in different countries. [03:01.26]For example, some countries ban speech [03:05.13]that could incite hatred. [03:07.39]Germany bans showing symbols of its Nazi past. [03:11.69]In the United States, [03:14.33]free speech is protected [03:16.48]by the Constitution. [03:18.13]But social and religious conservatives [03:21.03]expressed fears that they might now [03:24.48]be accused of a hate crime [03:26.44]if they denounced homosexuality. [03:29.59]Professor Lawrence says [03:31.95]the new federal law [03:33.99]-- meant to prevent violence [03:36.54]-- will not limit free speech rights. [03:39.04]On a separate issue, [03:41.68]Secretary of State Hillary Clinton [03:44.33]this week criticized international efforts [03:48.08]by Islamic countries [03:49.99]to ban anti-religious speech. [03:52.85]HILLARY CLINTON: "The best antidote [03:54.26]to intolerance is not the [03:56.13]'Defamation of Religions' approach [03:58.92]of banning and punishing offensive speech, [04:01.67]but rather a combination of robust [04:04.78]legal protections [04:06.10]against discrimination and hate crimes, [04:09.42]proactive government outreach [04:11.76]to minority religious groups, [04:13.46]and a vigorous defense of both freedom [04:16.26]of religion and expression." [04:18.21]The Organization of the Islamic Conference [04:21.20]has been urging the United Nations [04:23.69]to approve anti-defamation measures. [04:26.95]And that's IN THE NEWS [04:29.95]in VOA Special English, [04:32.54]written by Brianna Blake. [04:34.94]You can find transcripts [04:37.19]and podcasts of our programs [04:39.24]-- and share comments [04:41.35]-- at 51voa.com. I'm Bob Doughty.