2009 – MATTHEW SHEPARD AND JAMES BYRD, JR. HATE CRIMES AND PREVENTION ACT

On Oct. 22, President Barack Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes and Prevention Act into law, providing legal protections for LGBTQ+ people against hate crimes. The act was named after the victims, Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., who died due to hate crimes based on their sexual orientation. 

Earlier that year, the David Ray Hate Crimes Prevention Act was introduced into the House of Representatives. Its purpose was to advance federal enforcement laws regarding protection from hate crimes, establishing sexual orientation as a protected class, like gender or race. “You understood that we must stand against crimes that are meant not only to break bones, but to break spirits — not only to inflict harm, but to instill fear,” Obama said at the commemoration reception for the act. “You understand that the rights afforded every citizen under our Constitution mean nothing if we do not protect those rights — both from unjust laws and violent acts.”