The Mug Grandma Law (aka Federal Hate Crimes Bill)

“Sexual Orientation” essentially means “erotic attraction”. The American Psychiatric Association’s current Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders lists over twenty “sexual orientations” besides homosexuality, many of which would shock the sensibilities of most Americans. Pedophilia is one such “sexual orientation.”

Also shocking is the development that the U.S. Senate just passed a “hate crimes” bill recognizing “sexual orientation” as a category deserving of special protection. Supporters of this type of legislation hope to suppress free speech that opposes homosexuality.

The real danger of “hate-crime” laws is that they end up criminalizing thoughts and beliefs, rather than just actions. Homosexual activists would redefine any disagreement with homosexuality as “hate speech.” Laws in Canada and Sweden already state that it is a hate crime to criticize homosexual behavior. For example, a Swedish pastor was recently arrested at his church when he read verses from the Bible that call homosexuality a sin.

Former Los Angeles Times news editor Bob Knight aptly observes that such “hate crime” laws create a multi-tiered system of justice, in which some crime victims’ cases are taken more seriously than others, thus violating the constitutional guarantee of equal protection. Knight observes, “Equal protection means your grandma and your friend who lives as a homosexual have the same rights when they walk down the street. Under a hate crimes law, someone who mugs your grandmother will not be prosecuted as vigorously as

someone who commits the same crime against a homosexual. This says to criminals: ‘Mug Grandma; It’s less risky.’

Hate crimes laws aren’t about justice; they are about favoritism and special rights.” And it can be expected that if such a federal law is passed, police and prosecutors are likely to define more and more cases as “hate crimes” in pursuit of federal dollars. After California enacted a “hate crimes” law, incidents went from 75 to 2,052 in four years.

Citizens who value freedom and the fundamental protections afforded by our legal system should see this latest drive for a federal “hate crimes” law for the Trojan horse that it is – an effort to criminalize thoughts and beliefs and lay the foundation for the persecution of Christians in this country whose opposition to homosexuality would be characterized as “hate speech.”

We already have laws criminalizing speech that incites violence. Predictable under a “hate crimes” law would be the dominant media’s portrayal of any incident involving a homosexual as the fault of people who have publicly opposed homosexual activism.

Any Senator who voted for this is setting up our children and grandchildren for persecution as activist courts rule that biblical morality is “bigotry.”

Let’s pray that more critical thinking prevails in the U.S. House.