📧 Biased reporting on hate crimes?
Dave [Philipps] and Betsy [Hammond and Jamie Goldberg] (and Michael [Barbaro]),
I represent the Military Improvement Association, a decentralized affiliation of military families and Civilian Allies advocating for military civil rights. In December, we will be at the Oregon capitol to testify before a state Senate Committee covering veterans in advance of two bills the OR Legislative Assembly will be debating, LC2560 and LC2984. In preparing my testimony, I came across biased reporting on hate crimes that I am trying to understand before I commit my testimony to paper and, therefore, the public record.
In 2017, NY Times and The Oregonian reported on a Portland veteran who was charged with a hate crime;
Oregonian: Marine charged with hate crime in attack at Portland Iraqi restaurant
Oregonian: Marine who hit Iraqi restaurant employee with chair avoids prison
NYTimes: A Marine Attacked an Iraqi Restaurant. But Was It a Hate Crime or PTSD?
The reporters involved never asked, for their readers, how and why hate crimes were added as criminal enhacements at the federal or state level. If reporters had read the federal law, Pub. L. 111–84, div. E, they would have found Section 4712, The Soldiers Amendment, which extended federal protections to service members. This complicates the story considerably, but it is a basic fact that was ignored and I would like to hear why.
I look forward to hearing that this will be corrected and/or updated. I know it's been awhile, but to be fair, it had been on the books for eight years when this was reported in 2017. With Veterans Day coming up, I hope journalists such as yourself are not above addressing your own bias.
De Inscius Liber
