So, on November 14, 2007, Democracy Now did a story on the rise of hate crimes across the US. They talked about the Jena 6--the six black teens who were involved in a truly messed up case that started with them being threatened with a noose hanging from a schoolyard tree, all the way to having one of them facing ten years in jail for attempted murder. They also talked about the case of the seven minority lesbians who are in jail now because an instance that began with an asshole straight guy sexually harassing them ended with him getting touchy feely and them getting stabby-stabby. However, the most disturbing case they reported on was the case of Megan Williams who was kidnapped and, well, I'd rather not try to describe it when she did a perfect job of it herself for the AP, have a read (or don't, it's pretty god damned disturbing):
They were torturing me. They all passed a knife around that was -- and stabbing me. I was trying to get away as they were stabbing me, and they were holding me down and stuff. And they smothered me with a bag. That morning, I had a bag wrapped around my neck and everything. They choked me. They made me eat dog poop, rat poop and human. They made me drink their urine. And each time, they braided some switches together, and they were beating me across the back. They tore my clothes off me and everything.
And then they took me up to a lake. They said that was the place they were going to cut my throat and throw me in, and I was never going to come back and see my family again. They were just telling me that they were going to kill me.
And, you know, I was -- they made me take a bath in a trash can. They wouldn’t let me use the bathroom. I had to use the bathroom outside. I had to sleep outside. And they told me if they even remotely heard me once, that they would go out there and kill me. They poured candle wax in my hair. They pulled my hair out when they were cutting it with scissors. And, you know, they were just scary.
They had me tied up. I couldn’t go anywhere. Like the time when they left, they were going to go get some beer and stuff, and when they came back they said they were going to finish me off. And before they even got back, I had already got loose. I found a knife and cut myself loose.
I heard the police coming up to the driveway. When I’d seen the police, I just -- you know, I knew it was, you know, my chance to get out. And if I didn’t, I was going to die anyway. And then, that’s when they see me coming out there, and they thought -- they said I was going to lose my leg, when they see about the stabs. And I was scared. I didn’t know what to do. All I kept saying -- I was thinking about my momma, also wanting to come home. And every time I close my eyes, all I see is that knife, the one they kept stabbing me and stabbing me. It’s just -- you know, it’s a nightmare.
Aren't we humans wonderful?
Now, here's where it gets interesting for you, the reader.
I truly believe acts like the ones described above are truly, truly horrible. These people who commit crimes like this should be thrown in jail for life. However, I don't like the idea of calling what they do a "hate crime." This punishes people for what they think and not what they do.
As a rational society, we should act when wrongs are committed, but should not act more when really bad wrongs are committed. The punishment should fit the crime, not the thought behind it.
Who is worse?
1) The man who kills indiscriminately?
2) The man who kills only certain people who fit his own criteria?
Man #1 might kill anyone--gay or straight.
Man #2 will only kill gays.
That means that Man #2 is a threat to only a percentage of the population.
I know it sounds odd, but basing these choices on how much hate is involved is so arbitrary that it will definitely result (if it hasn't already) in unfair sentences.
Wrong acting is a crime. Wrong thinking isn't. So, wrong thinking behind a wrong act should not make it a worse crime, punishment-wise. Discriminating against those that do misses the point. You can't legislate against hate. You can only legislate against acting on that hate.
Do I think any of the men and women who committed the above crimes should get away with it? Of course not! But I don't think they should get harsher treatment because of their beliefs. That's not fair.
Man #1 above, who kills 30 people of various races and creeds could get 30 years to life while Man #2 could see a life sentence, flat, because he hated the race or sexual preference of the person he killed.
I'm just using those sentences as examples--the law in your state may impose different sentences.
The point is this: prosecute all crime, leave the judging of motivation to a higher power.
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