Hate crime laws and sexual orientation

This article provides definitions for hate crimes, a summary of national da ta on hate crime incidents, and descriptions of federal and state hate crim e laws. The author presents various arguments in support of and against hat e crime laws, and the inclusion of sexual orientation in such laws. The aut hor contends that if is illogical and a violation of the Fourteenth Amendme nt to exclude sexual orientation from hate crime laws. The perpetrators of hate crime incidents, regardess of the target group, have similar motives a nd perpetrate similar types of assaults; the victims experience similar phy sical and psychological harm. Excluding a class of persons who are targets of hate crimes denies them equal protection under the law because the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment establishes a fundamental ri ght to equal benefit of laws protecting personal security.