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A new bill is currently being debated in the US House of Representatives that deals with expanding the current scope of hate crime legislation.

Opponents of the measure have stated that the measure is unnecessary in today’s age and that promoting such legislation will only further punish individual thought and incur upon the First Amendment. One of the most ardent opponents of the new legislation is Virginia Foxx, a Congresswoman from North Carolina.

Politico is reporting that according to a senior Democratic aide, Matthew Shepard’s mother, anti-hate crimes activist Judy Shepard, was in the gallery watching when Foxx was quoted as saying, “I also would like to point out that there was a bill — the hate crimes bill that’s called the Matthew Shepard bill is named after a very unfortunate incident that happened where a young man was killed, but we know that that young man was killed in the commitment of a robbery. It wasn’t because he was gay. This — the bill was named for him, hate crimes bill was named for him, but it’s really a hoax that that continues to be used as an excuse for passing these bills.”

Rep. Foxx’s comments have incited a bit of a stir, given that Matthew Shepard’s killers were prosecuted of a hate crime. Below is the full government legislation.

Hate Crime Prevention Act 2009 - Free Legal Forms

To download this document, click here.