Everyday someone is bashed for being homosexual. These are what you called gay hate crimes. This is very serious. Even though people are a little more accepting of LGBT community. Gay & lesbian hate crimes continue to rise. Imagine walking to the store and you get harrased because of the clothes your wearing or even the way you walk. And while they are beating you, your getting called every gay slur there is.
According to http://www.about.com/, "The federal hate crime laws do include the term "sexual orientation." As of July 2004, seven states have no hate crime laws at all, 20 states have hate crime laws that do not protect sexual orientation, and 24 states have hate crime laws that do include sexual orientation."
What that means is that if someone commits a federal crime against a person because of their sexual orientation, this crime can be called a hate crime. However, if the crime is not a federal one, then it may only be considered a hate crime if it occurs in one of the 24 states with hate crime laws that include sexual orientation. Some good news out of all of this is About The Federal Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009:
The Federal Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009 (H.R. 1913) passed the U.S. House on April 29, 2009 by a vote of 249 to 175. The bill expands 1969 federal hate crime laws to include sexual orientation, gender expression or identity and disability. Previous hate crime laws gave the Justice Department authority to prosecute crimes motivated only by race, color, national origin and religion.
The Federal Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009 was first introduced in 2007. The bill, sponsored by Representatives John Conyers (D-MI) and Mark Kirk (R-IL), passed by a vote of 237 to 180..........(read more at http://gaylife.about.com/od/hatecrimes/p/matthewshepard.htm )
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