Suspect charged in gay teen's murder Nov 19, 2009
President Obama signed into law last month the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which extends federal protection to illegal acts motivated by a person's actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. If Martinez Matos is charged under the hate crimes provision, it is believed it would be the first such case under the latest addition to the law. (CNN)
Suspect held in gay man's slaying Nov 19, 2009
Last month, President Obama signed into law the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which extends federal protection against illegal acts motivated by a person's actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability. Gay activist Serrano said he does not believe anti-gay sentiment is any stronger in Puerto Rico's Latin culture than anywhere else. (CNN)
Hate crimes law attacks Christians Nov 2, 2009
The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Hate Crimes Act, which would never have passed, was loaded into the current bill as a memorial to the late Sen. Edward Kennedy to force special protection under law. (Orangeburg Times and Democrat, SC)
Obama signs federal hate-crimes legislation Nov 1, 2009
President Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in a Rose Garden ceremony on Oct 28. The law is named after victims of two brutal 1998 murders: Shepard, a 21-year-old gay Wyoming college student and Byrd, a black man dragged to his death. (Cleveland Jewish News, OH)
No comments posted. Nov 1, 2009
President Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in a Rose Garden ceremony on Oct 28. The law is named after victims of two brutal 1998 murders: Shepard, a 21-year-old gay Wyoming college student and Byrd, a black man dragged to his death. (Cleveland Jewish News, OH)
Hate crime law hailed Oct 30, 2009
The law also was named for James Byrd Jr., a black Texas man dragged to his death in a racially motivated killing the same year. The measure also extends protections to those attacked because of their gender or disability. (Albany Times Union)
Obama keeps his word on hate crimes bill Oct 30, 2009
President Barack Obama is joinedby the relatives ofvictims of hate crimesduring a reception commemorating the enactment of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. . (MSNBC -- Politics)
Obama signs hate crimes bill into law Oct 30, 2009
It is named for Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr., both killed in 1998 ... The hate crimes measure was named for Matthew Shepard, a gay Wyoming teenager who died after being kidnapped and severely beaten in October 1998, and James Byrd Jr., an African-American man dragged to death in Texas the same year. (CNN)
Obama Hails Expansion of Hate Crimes Legislation Oct 29, 2009
President Barack Obama, hugs Dennis Shepard, center, as his wife Judy Shepard, left, watches after Obama spoke at an event commemorating the enactment of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crime Prevention Act in a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009 ... The bill is named for Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, whose family members stood with Obama. (ABC News -- Wire)
Obama inks defense, hate crimes bill Oct 29, 2009
28: President Obama speaks at a reception commemorating the signing of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. hate Crimes Prevention Act ... Oct. 28: President Obama speaks at a reception commemorating the signing of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. hate Crimes Prevention Act. (MSNBC -- Politics)
Upgraded hate-crimes law signed Oct 29, 2009
The bill is named for Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, whose family members stood with Obama. Shepard, a gay college student, was murdered and found tied to a fence in Wyoming in 1998. (AZCentral -- News)
No evidence of anti-gay bias crimes in Delta Oct 29, 2009
Obama s signing of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act comes after years of lobbying by gay and lesbian leaders and human rights groups. The House and Senate recently passed the measure, which is named for a gay man and an African-American man who were both brutally murdered for their respective sexual orientation and racial status. (Greenville Delta Democrat Times, MS)
Obama honors slain soldiers killed in Afghanistan Oct 29, 2009
U.S. President Barack Obama delivers remarks at a reception commemorating the enactment of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act at the White House in Washington October 28, 2009. (REUTERS/Yuri Gripas). (The Star Online, Malaysia)
Mother finds solace in hate crimes bill Oct 28, 2009
The measure is named for Matthew Shepard, a gay Wyoming teenager who died after being kidnapped and severely beaten in October 1998, and James Byrd Jr., an African-American man dragged to his death in Texas the same year. Several religious groups have expressed concern that a hate-crimes law could be used to criminalize conservative speech relating to subjects such as abortion or homosexuality. (CNN)
Hate crimes now include sexual identity Oct 27, 2009
The federal legislation, the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, now includes crimes committed against people based on gender, sexual orientation, sexual identity and disability under the statutes of hate crimes, which previously only covered color, nationality, religion and race ... The act is named for Shepard, a gay college student who was beaten to death and tied to a fence in Wyoming, and James Byrd, a black man who died after being tied to the back of a truck... (Daily Collegian, PA)
More news reports... Oct 26, 2009
With a Senate vote of 68-29, The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act has passed in Congress. . (The Battalion, TX)
Hate crime prevention act passes in Congress Oct 26, 2009
The bill is named after Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Shepard ... "The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act is significant on many levels, but at the base of everything, this act finally extends the basic human right of safety from hate-based acts of violence to a segment of the population that is often subjected to bias on the individual and community level," said Lowell Kane, GLBT Resource Center Program coordinator. (The Battalion, TX)
Senate passes bill expanding hate crimes law Oct 24, 2009
The Senate's 68-29 vote in favor of a $680 billion defense spending bill, which includes the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009, came after the House approved the bill earlier this month. "The answer to hate and bigotry has to be ultimately found in increased respect and tolerance for all our citizens," said Sen. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Politics)
Punish Crime, Not The Thought Oct 11, 2009
Similarly, no hate crimes legislation was needed that same year when James Byrd, an African-American, was dragged to his death in Jasper, Texas. Byrd's murderers were quickly arrested, tried and convicted. (New Iberia, LA)
Hate Crimes Law On the Way to Obama... Oct 11, 2009
The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act (HCPA) has gone through a number of rewrites to get to the present state ... The Act was renamed to honour two men brutally murdered in 1998, Matthew Shepard and James Byrd (he died in a racially motivated attack in Texas. (Suite101.com)
Rep. Steve King slams hate crimes bill as protecting 'sexual idiosyncrasies' Oct 10, 2009
King unloaded on the act as a mechanism for the federal government to advance "the homosexual agenda," saying that the killers of Shepard, as well as those who dragged James Byrd, an African-American in Texas, in 1998 to his death had already received the ultimate sentence: the death penalty. "And the Matthew Shepard case, there's been a fair amount of information that came out -- that really wasn't the motivation of the people who killed him," King said. (TheHill.com)
Congress acts to expand hate crimes law to cover gays Oct 9, 2009
The legislation is known as the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, named for Shepard and a black man killed in a race-based attack in Texas the same year. The hate crimes legislation allocates $5 million per year to the Justice Department to provide assistance to local communities in investigating such crimes, a process that can sometimes strain local police resources. (Boston Globe)
Another View: The race dialogue we wont have Jul 29, 2009
Aside from the revelation of incendiary sermons by Wright (2008), there were the stiff sentences meted out to the Jena 6 in Louisiana (2007); the drowning of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina (2005); the death of unarmed African immigrant Amadou Diallo in a hail of 41 police bullets in New York (1999); the dragging death of James Byrd in Jasper, Texas (1998); the New York police assault of Abner Louima with a plunger handle (1997); the Million Man March (1995); the arrest, trial and acquittal... (Hanford Sentinal, CA)
PUNISH THE CRIME, NOT THE THOUGHT Jul 27, 2009
The same year, James Byrd, a black Man, was dragged to his death in Jasper, Texas -- a crime all too reminiscent of lynchings during the Jim Crow era. Unlike racist thugs in those days, Byrd's murderers were quickly arrested, tried and convicted. (New York Post -- Opinions)
Hate-crimes bill one step closer to passage Jul 24, 2009
Opponents of the bill note states have successfully prosecuted murders motivated by hate, such as the James Byrd Jr. case, which led to the convictions and death sentences of two of the perpetrators ... The James Byrd and Matthew Shepard cases were heinous crimes, Link says. (Cleveland Jewish News, OH)
Blacks, whites protest over dragging death Jul 22, 2009
Protesters have said the McClelland case echoes the murder of James Byrd, a black man who was chained to a pickup by three white men and dragged to death in 1998 in Jasper. Authorities, however, have denied there was a racial angle in the McClelland death, pointing out he was friends with Finley and Crostley. (Boston Globe)
The Truth About Hate Crimes Jul 21, 2009
After George W. Bush vetoed a hate crimes bill, the NAACP put out a campaign ad featuring the daughter of James Byrd, the victim of a racist murder in Texas. She said Bushs veto made her feel like her father was killed all over again. (Townhall.com)
Father of PGA Tour winner Byrd dies Jul 8, 2009
James Byrd Jr. was 65 ... James Byrd lettered in baseball and football at the University of North Carolina ... James Byrd was diagnosed with brain cancer after collapsing at a Clemson football game in November 2007. (Orangeburg Times and Democrat, SC)
Andy Answers His Mail Jun 22, 2009
How about Texas where there was a horrendous racial murder in which a black man (James Byrd) was tied up with a rope and dragged behind a pick-up truck (while alive) for miles, until there was nothing left of him but a heap of blood and mangled flesh. His body had caught a sewage drain on the side of the road resulting in his decapitation. (CBS News -- 60 minutes)
Charges dropped in black man's dragging death Jun 5, 2009
The racial implications of the case reminded some of the murder of James Byrd, who was chained by the ankles to the bumper of a pickup truck and dragged to death in 1998 in the east Texas town of Jasper. Three white men were convicted of killing him; two are on death row and the other is serving a life term. (MSNBC -- Crime)
Charges Dismissed in Texas Dragging Death Jun 5, 2009
Protesters compared McClelland's death to the East Texas dragging death of James Byrd in Jasper 11 years ago. FOX NEWS VIDEOS. (Fox News)
Red vs. The Wolf: Bens Ford Christian Drama Club presents a little different slant on the Little Red Riding Hood story May 19, 2009
Jason Noah, Cody Sharp, Nicky Upton, and Emily Miley directed lighting, and Gene Foster, Paul Thibodeaux and James Byrd controlled the video and sound. Tim Sanders, Devin Castleberry, Nathan Pierce, Landon Smith, Allissa Goble, and Robyn Hines served as ushers for the shows, and Kory Lott was the emcee. (Bogalusa Daily News, LA)
Are hate crimes any worse than others? May 17, 2009
After James Byrd Jr., a black man, was savagely dragged to his death in Jasper, Texas, by three white men, Senator Ted Kennedy introduced a federal hate-crime bill and brought Byrd's daughter to Washington to testify in its behalf ... If James Byrd had been lynched by three black men, would his slaughter not have been as monstrous. (Boston Globe)
MSCA to help LVB church raise funds May 7, 2009
Kevin Scott, James Byrd Sr. and L.J. Jackson are on the building committee and have been studying what is available that will fit the needs both of the church and the community. Many of the members, Johnson said, are young students, young families not yet established and elders on a fixed income. (Madisonville Meteor, TX)
The faux outrage over Homeland Security report Apr 17, 2009
Finally, after all these decades, bookman has something new to lay at the feet of the James Byrd liberal strawman memorial. Even if they had to conjure it up from thin air, it works for him. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Opinion)
ISU shows off talent Apr 16, 2009
News Story - Idaho State Journal. POCATELLO -- Associate Dean of Students James "Byrd" Yizar said Idaho State University definitely has talent. (Pocatello Idaho State Journal, ID)
No DNA on truck in Texas dragging case Apr 16, 2009
History of tense race relationsMcClelland's family and others have alleged that his death was racially motivated and compared it to the notorious dragging death of James Byrd 11 years ago in Jasper, another East Texas town. Byrd was chained to the back of a pickup truck and dragged about three miles. (MSNBC -- Crime)
Gangs focus of movie, speaker Apr 13, 2009
News Story - Idaho State Journal. POCATELLO -- "Crips and Bloods: Made in America" will be shown Tuesday from 5:15 to 6:45 p.m. at the Bengal Theater, Pond Student Union at Idaho State University. (Pocatello Idaho State Journal, ID)
Stopping hate Apr 10, 2009
James Byrd Jr. was tied to a truck naked and dragged behind for three miles, because he was black. The Columbine High School shootings, which consisted of the death of 12 students, one teacher and two suicides, occurred on April 20, 1999. (East Tennessean, TN)
Crossing the racial divide with a prayer Feb 28, 2009
He highlighted the dragging death of James Byrd Jr. last June in Jasper, Texas. Byrd, who was black, was chained to the back of a pickup truck and dragged until he was dismembered. (Racine Journal Times, WI)
Today in History Feb 25, 2009
Ten years ago: A jury in Jasper, Texas, sentenced white supremacist John William King to death for chaining James Byrd Jr., a black man, to a pickup truck and dragging him to his death. Israel's Supreme Court blocked the extradition of American teenager Samuel Sheinbein to the U.S. to face charges stemming from a grisly slaying in Maryland. (Yahoo News)
Would You Turn Your Cheek to a Terrorist? Feb 8, 2009
Killings by the Klan have happened as late as the 1990s (James Byrd murder in Texas). And nativist feelings are alive and well in the US. TH is a prime example. (Townhall.com)
