Contact: Stacey Holliday, Concerned Women for America, 202-488-7000 ext. 126

WASHINGTON, Mar. 27 /Christian Newswire/ -- Deceptive legislation which would give special privileges and protection to homosexuals and cross-dressers has been introduced in the House by Rep. John Conyers (D-Michigan).  The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 (H.R. 1592) is a dangerous bill that would treat homosexuals as a more valuable class of citizens and threaten the constitutional rights of Americans. 

Matt Barber, Concerned Women for America's (CWA) Policy Director for Cultural Issues, said, "H.R. 1592 represents a clear and present danger to our first liberties (freedom of speech, religion and association).  'Hate crimes' laws place us on a slippery slope toward religious persecution.  These laws are already being employed as a tool in Brazil, Europe, Canada – and even right here in America – to intimidate and silence people who honor natural human sexuality, and who value the sanctity of marriage as between one man and one woman.  If you speak out against homosexual behavior, then you are somehow guilty of 'hate speech' under the entirely subjective application of similar 'hate crimes' laws. 

"These laws require law enforcement authorities to get into the mind of the 'offender' and penalize him for his thoughts.  H.R. 1592 elevates one group of Americans above others based on sexual preferences and other chosen behaviors such as cross-dressing, creating a special class of victims.  All things being equal, it means that if a 5-foot-2-inch grandmother is violently attacked on the street (such as the highly publicized incident videotaped in New York earlier this month where a 101 year old woman was brutally assaulted) she is less worthy of justice than a 6-foot-4-inch homosexual man who is attacked by the same assailant while leaving a 'gay' bar.

"Reasonably-minded people don't advocate violence or harassment of any kind, for anything, against anyone regardless of a person's sexual preferences, behaviors, or chosen wardrobe.  And there are laws in place to protect all Americans from both violent crimes and harassment.  Violators of those laws should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, and there's no evidence to suggest that they are not.  'Hate crimes' laws are dangerous, extraneous and entirely unnecessary," concluded Barber. 

Concerned Women for America is the nation's largest public policy women's organization.