Hate Crime Petition

[Charles Brown]

[> *On October 6, outside Laramie, Wyoming, Matthew  Shepard, a
> 21-year-old University of Wyoming student, was  tortured, beaten, and
> left tied to a pole in the freezing  cold. Six days later, he died of
> his wounds in Poudre Valley  Hospital, Fort Collins, Colorado.
> Matthew was  murdered because he was gay and because he was a prominent 
and charismatic member of the gay and lesbian student group on  campus.
> Right now Wyoming and Colorado have no anti-hate  crime laws; the
> state legislature in Wyoming has  voted down anti-bias bills for each of
> the > past three  years.
>
> There is an effort in Wyoming  and Colorado to enact Matthew Shepard
> Laws, which would  strongly punish the perpetrators of hate crimes.
> This  petition demands the broadening of federal anti-hate crime law.
>
> Opening Statement:
> "As a  religious voice, we state strongly that violence on the  basis
> of > sexual orientation, race or gender is wrong,  is evil, is
> reprehensible." -John Buehren, President of The Unitarian Universalist
> Association, speaks for Unitarian Universalists but his words  are
> reflected in the hearts of people everywhere who believe  we must
> speak > out, take action against, and condemn  hate crimes in all their 
ugly
> forms. > A resolution follows:
>
> WHEREAS: We affirm and promote the inherent worth  and
> dignity of every person; and
>
> WHEREAS: We commend the efforts of those  individuals who dedicate
> their lives to causes of social  justice and human rights; and
>
> WHEREAS:  We support actions that protect the individual's rights of
> life, liberty and pursuit of happiness.
>
> THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, That we hereby urge the passage of  The
> Hate > Crimes Prevention Act (HCPA), H.R.3081 and  S.1529
> (The Hate Crimes Prevention Act (HCPA), H.R.3081  and
> S.1529, would amend current federal law (which permits  federal
> prosecution of a hate crime only if the crime was  motivated by bias
> based on religion, national > origin, or color) to include real or 
perceived sexual
> orientation, gender, and disability so the FBI would be able  to
> investigate and prosecute violent hate crimes against  gays,
> lesbians > and bisexuals.

Under this bill, hate crimes that cause death or  bodily
> injury because of prejudice can be investigated  federally,
> regardless of whether the victim was  exercising a federally protected 
right.
>The only way that our representatives can be aware of the base  of
> support for this change to the current law is by making  our voices
> heard.   Please add your name to this petition and forward it to friends 
who
> believe > in what it stands for. The petition will then  be forwarded to 
the
> President of The United States; the Vice  President of the United
> States; and our United States  Senators and House Members.
>
> Petition  Management:
> 1. This petition is being passed around the  Internet. Please add
> your name to it so that we can  have tougher laws against all hate
> crimes  Please keep the petition rolling. Do not reply to  me.
> Please sign and forward to others to sign. This is being  forwarded to
> several people at once to add their  names. It will not matter if
> many people receive the  same list as the names are being managed.
>
> 2. If you print out this petition for circulation and signing  please
> email the listing of names with locations to the  email address:
> AllRunique at aol.com (an email address  created to receive this
> petition) Include a note to  dicate you have a hand-signed petition
> and  include the number of names listed.
>
> 3. If you  happen to be the 100th, 150th, 200th, 250th,
> this petition,  please forward a copy to the email address:
> AllRunique at aol.com 
>
> 4. If you sign, please pass it on to others. If  not,
> please do not kill it. Send it on to the email  address:
> AllRunique at aol.com 
>
> Thank You
> Leslie  Palmer
>
> I can not stay silent, my  outrage and compassion will not allow.
>   -------------------------------------------
> Note: It is  preferable that you Select the entirety of this letter
> and
> then COPY it into a new outgoing message, add your
> name to  the bottom of the list, then send it on. Or if option is
> available, do a SEND AGAIN
>
> Sign Here:
> 1) Leslie  Palmer, Jacksonville, FL
> 2) Stephen Silverman, South Burlington,  VT
> 3) Wayne Arnason
> 4) Theo Diamond, Charlottesville, Va
> 5)  Sasha Kopf, Northampton, MA / Princeton, NJ
> 6) Geoffrey B. Metz, Tufts  Univ., Medford, MA
> 7) Emily Sporl, Tufts University, Medford,  MA
> 8.) Tai Collins, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH
> 9.) Danielle  Lazarin, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH
> 10.) Priscilla Morales, Yale  University, New Haven, CT
> 11.) Lydia Pace, Yale University, New Haven,  CT
> 12.) Julia Goren, Williams College, Williamstown, MA
> 13.) Jamie  Waxman, Columbia University
> 14.) Rebecca Zimmerman, Columbia University,  NY
> 15.) Ariel Meyerstein, Columbia University, NY
> 16.) Naomi  Richman, Goucher College, MD
> 17.) Aaron Finkel, University of  Missouri-Columbia, MO
> 18.) Sally Noedel, Truman State Univ., Kirksville,  MO
> 19.) Kim Cook, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH
> 20.) Molly  Mitchell, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH
> 21.) Jeremy Schwab, Oberlin  College, Oberlin, OH
> 22.) Aaron Manheim, Oberlin College, Oberlin,  OH
> 23.) Rebecca pronsky, Oberlin College, Oberlin, OH
> 24.) Rebecca  Milburn, Wesleyan Univ., Middletown, CT
> 25.) Christene DeJong, Wesleyan  Univ., Middletown, CT
> 26.) Lisa Lapman, Wellesley College, Wellesley,  MA
> 27.) Julia Sussner, Wellesley College, MA
> 28.) Adrian  Dellecker, Trinity College, CT
> 29.) Sarah Mullen, Trinity College,  CT
> 30.) Phu Thai, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI
> 31.)  Leigh Phillips, Wheaton College, Norton, MA
> 32.) Matthew Small,  Heidelberg College, Tiffin, OH
> 33.) Amy Ensley, Chapman University,  Orange, CA
> 34.) Lucinda Thornton, Chapman University, Orange, CA35.)  Susan
> Bowen,
> Mission Viejo, CA
> 36.) Sara Bowen, Beloit College,  Beloit, WI
> 37.) Stephanie Muller, Beloit College, Beloit, WI
> 38.)  Judy Lu, University of Chicago, IL
> 39.)  Katie Monahan, Miami  University, Oxford, OH
> 40.)  Jeffrey L. Wax, Miami University,  Oxford, OH41.)  Robin L.
> Perlmuter, Miami University, Oxford,  OH
> 42.)  David J. Stern, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie,  NY
> 43.) Elizabeth A. Watson, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, NY
> 44.)  Eileen H. Elkies, Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
> 45.) Sara M. Brown,  Dickinson College, Carlisle, PA
> 46.) Lauren Palmer Fiske, Dickinson  College, Carlisle, PA
> 47.) Erin Fullerton, University of  Virginia,
>      Charlottesville, Va.
> 48.)  Elizabeth Merkin, UVA, Charlottesville, VA
> 49.) Anna Colangelo, UVA,  Charlottesville, VA
> 50.)  Amanda Sovik, UVA, Charlottesville,  VA
> 51.)  Kip Lewis, Haverford College, Haverford, PA
> 52.)  Caroline Boyd, Haverford College, Haverford, PA
> 53.) Daphne Loring, Sarah  Lawrence College, Bronxville, NY
> 54.) Sylvia Bronson, U C Berkeley,  Berkeley, CA
> 55.) Corey Masters, Williamstown, MA
> 56.) Patricia  Kim, Madison, WI
> 57.) Andrea Cooper, Lyme, Ct.
> 58.) Salvatore Joseph Caligiuri, Old Lyme, Ct.
> 59.) Carrie Beckwith, Mystic,  Ct.
> 60.) Stephanie Burton, Boston, MA.
> 61.) Lisa Gene Brown, Hampshire College, Amherst, MA.
> 62.) Jean Marc Favreau, Silver Spring, MD
> 63.) Andres Gleich, New York, NY
64.) Vanessa Richards, New York, NY
65.) Sofía Quintero, Bronx, NY