I thought I would take this opportunity to pass along what opponents of
the */H.R. 1913 - the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act
/*are passing along to try and bias the general public. It isn't pretty,
and these groups are influential. If you have never taken a stand on
these issues, now is the time to contact your Congressmen and let them
know how much you need them to vote for this bill. It is important to
note that this legislation pertains to physical violence and has nothing
to do with the "speaking out on Biblical standards of morality" as
stated in the propaganda. These groups are a real threat to us. Here is
what they are trying to protect against:
'(2) OFFENSES INVOLVING ACTUAL OR PERCEIVED RELIGION, NATIONAL ORIGIN,
GENDER, SEXUAL ORIENTATION, GENDER IDENTITY, OR DISABILITY-
'(A) IN GENERAL- Whoever, whether or not acting under color of law, in
any circumstance described in subparagraph (B), willfully causes bodily
injury to any person or, through the use of fire, a firearm, or an
explosive or incendiary device, attempts to cause bodily injury to any
person, because of the actual or perceived religion, national origin,
gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability of any person--
Here is some of the propaganda:
Please help us get this information into the hands of as many people as
possible by forwarding it to your entire e-mail list of family and friends.
*Don't allow President Obama to remove America's most basic freedoms*
*Contact Congress today about proposed "hate crimes" legislation -
before it's too late! *
April 20, 2009
Dear Friend,
America's most basic freedoms of speech, conscience and the free
exercise of religion are under attack and the time to act is now. *If
President Obama succeeds with his priority of passing the Hate Crimes
law, /H.R. 1913 - the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act/,
it could lead to the criminalization of the Biblical view of
homosexuality in sermons and elsewhere.* An offended homosexual could
accuse a pastor, Sunday School teacher of broadcaster of causing
emotional injury simply by expressing the Biblical view that
homosexuality is sinful.
H.R. 1913 is one more step in the campaign to legitimize homosexuality
in our culture by treating it as a protected class along with race,
gender, and religion. *The long term goal is to create one more platform
from which to eradicate wrong thinking about homosexuality. *H.R. 1913
will undoubtedly pave the way to legislation that will make thinking
Biblically about homosexuality a "hate crime."
We believe prosecutors and anti-Christian groups will use loop holes in
the proposed legislation to muzzle the church from speaking out on
Biblical standards of morality which are shared by most Americans.
Unnecessary lawsuits will bring a chilling effect to the free speech and
religious liberty of our churches and of our members.
*Laws already exist in all 50 states to punish violent crime, making
this legislation unnecessary, unfair, indefinable, un-American and
constitutionally suspect.
*
Laws in civilized nations have always been designed to punish conduct,
not thought. H.R. 1913 is not designed to aid in crime fighting.
*Punishing wrong beliefs about homosexuality is the sole aim of /H.R.
1913 - the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act/.
*
*
* And another piece of propaganda:
A vote is looming this week in Congress on a bill that one conservative
activist warns would not only silence Christian opposition to
homosexuality, but also would legitimize deviant forms of "sexual
orientation."
A markup vote is expected Wednesday in the House Judiciary Committee on
the Local Law Enforcement and Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009. House
Democrats only have to give 24 hours' notice before the vote. The
measure (H.R. 1913) sponsored by Representatives John Conyers
(D-Michigan) and Mark Kirk (R-Illinois) would add homosexuals and
transgender people to the list of classes federally protected from
so-called "hate crimes."
Andrea Lafferty, executive director of the Traditional Values Coalition,
says the bill is a serious threat to religious freedom.
"Your pastor could be prosecuted for conspiracy to commit a hate crime
if it passes and become law," she warns. "This so-called 'hate crimes'
bill will be used to lay the legal foundation and framework to
investigate, prosecute, and persecute pastors, business owners, Bible
teachers, Sunday School teachers, youth pastors -- you name it -- or
anyone else whose actions are based upon and reflect the truth found in
the Bible."
Andrea Lafferty TVCTVC says H.R. 1913 broadly defines "intimidation" --
and offers up this example: "A pastor's sermon could be considered 'hate
speech' under this legislation if heard by an individual who then acts
aggressively against persons based on 'sexual orientation.'" Under those
circumstances, says the group, the pastor could be prosecuted for
"conspiracy to commit a hate crime."
The legislation has another "serious problem," the pro-family group
says, because Congress has failed to define the term "sexual
orientation." Consequently, says TVC, 30 sexual orientations (as defined
by the American Psychiatric Association) will "arguably be protected"
under the legislation. "Those 30 sexual orientations include behaviors
that are felonies or misdemeanors in most states or can result in
death," notes the group's website.
In addition, TVC argues the bill is based on a fraudulent premise: that
there is an epidemic of so-called "hate crimes" against "lesbian, gay,
bisexual, and transgender" persons that needs federal involvement for
local law enforcement officials.
Lafferty says unless Christians in America act, the hate crimes bill
could be on President Obama's desk in three to four weeks at the most.
