Introduction to Hate Crimes ¾ - 1
Originally the FBI’s investigations of hate crimes were limited to crimes that were committed based on the victim’s race, color, religion, or national origin (“Hate Crimes”, 2017). Although after the passage of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009 the definition was expanded to included crimes committed based on the bias of perceived or actual gender identify, sexual orientation, disability, or gender (“Hate Crimes”, 2017). Hate crimes can vary from murder, arson, or vandalism; however, with the added element of bias. To make it easier to collect statistics the FBI has defined a hate crime as a “criminal offense against a person or property motivated in whole …show more content…
According to this strain theory, “criminal and deviant acts are one possible adaptation to stress. The three major types of deviance-producing strain are: failure to achieve positively valued goals, removal of positively valued stimuli, 30 and confrontation with negative stimuli.” (Akers & Sellers, 2013). When these groups of individual’s stressors are hit they react in an angry …show more content…
As hate crimes appear to be on the rise a large number at the state level as well as at the federal level have passed legislation that helps regulate bias motivated crimes. On the federal level the primary legislations are the Criminal Interference with Right to Fair Housing, Hate Crime Acts, damage to religious property; obstruction of persons in the free exercise of religious beliefs, and federally protected activities (“United States: Hate Crimes Laws”, n.d.). The Criminal Interference with Right to Fair Housing Act helps provide solutions for housing-related hate crimes. For example, vandalism of the property with bias motivation such as a cross burning on an African Americans lawn. The Hate Crimes Act was brought to light and created after the tragic crimes that occurred to Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. The act prohibits “Offenses involving or perceived race, color, religion, or national origin… religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability.” (“United States: Hate Crimes Laws”, n.d.). The damage to religious property; obstruction of persons in the free exercise of religious beliefs is the legislation were “intentionally defaces, damages, or destroys any religious real property, because of the religious character of that property, or attempts to do so; or intentionally obstructs, by