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Civil Rights Lawyers Organize a National Response to Hate Crime

NCJ Number
178210
Journal
Corrections Today Volume: 61 Issue: 5 Dated: August 1999 Pages: 88-145
Author(s)
Clyde E. Murphy
Date Published
1999
Length
6 pages
Annotation
The Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law has conducted many activities to address hate crimes and in June 1999 announced the formation of a coordinated response to hate crimes; the response is funded by the Ford Foundation and will involve efforts with the Department of Justice to eradicate this destructive and insidious problem.
Abstract
The most recent report since the passage of the 1990 Hate Crime Statistics Act documents 8,049 incidents of bias-related violence in 1997; these incidents affected more than 10,000 victims. However, bias-related violence is severely underreported by victims, particularly homosexuals and immigrants. Efforts of the Lawyers' Committees and other advocates include advocacy to improve laws and policies, training of police officers and prosecutors to enforce the laws effectively, community education, and other activities. The Lawyers' Committees cooperate with community organizations to foster a positive vision of a peaceful, diverse country. An enforcement function is advocating for hate crime victims in criminal proceedings by assisting prosecutors, victims, witnesses, and family members. Efforts also include victim advocacy in civil court, legislative and policy advocacy, and extensive further efforts under the 1999 initiative. Another national objective is the passage of the Hate Crimes Prevention Act. 2 references

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