The Texas Roots of the Hate Crimes Bill

Lefty.

History was made, folks. Our country's first pro-gay-rights legislation was signed into law: The Matthew Shepard & James Byrd Hate Crimes Prevention Act. But did you know that the bill has some serious Lone Star roots?

The history is dreadful. The murder of James Byrd Jr. in 1998 shocked the state and the nation, awakening us to the nature of hate crimes and galvanizing the movement that lead to Texas hate crimes legislation and eventually to today's signing of this historic act.

Considering the context of the time, it's interesting to go back and read about the struggle to pass the initial James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act in Texas. And by context we mean Bush administration. As in Bush, the Texas governor running a campaign for president of the United States, administration. Initially introduced by House Rep. Senfronia Thompson (D-Houston), the legislation marked a remarkable collaboration between Texas's gay and African-American communities, and was finally signed into law in May of 2001 by Gov. Rick Perry, after the ugly chest puffery of the 2000 elections subsided.