I saw this earlier and my first question was ... and still is ... what is the definition of "lynching" in this piece of ... uh ... "legislation"? Somehow, I suspect that under this bill the "lynchee" has to be black in order for a proscribed "lynching" to take place. So, once again, so-called "hate crime" legislation is just a prejudicial, one-sided farce that attempts ... but, FAILS miserably ... to "cure" a nonexistent problem.
1. Per Wikipedia, the last lynching of a black man occurred in 1981. Three KKK perpetrators were convicted - one executed in the electric chair, and the other two received life in prison. A fourth died before his trial was completed.
2. Murder is a hate crime no matter how it is accomplished or who does it to whom. The death penalty resolves the issue of punishment, in general, so adding the label "hate crime" doesn't mean squat.
Therefore, this political grandstanding is simply meaningless emotional masturbation of the black community. If politicians want to start acting like responsible adults, they will support the death penalty for intentional, deliberate murder of another human being - no matter the skin colors of the people involved - because willful murder is an act of hate to begin with.