Fighting Hate Whenever and Wherever it Arises

Atlanta. Buffalo. Charleston. El Paso. Oak Creek. Orlando. Pittsburgh. These are only a few of the communities devastated by hate-fueled violence in recent years. And this weekend, Colorado Springs joined that unenviable list when a 22-year-old gunman burst into Club Q, a long-beloved safe haven and place of celebration for the LGBTQ community, and in a few short minutes shot and killed five people, seriously injured more than 25, destroying the lives of the victims, countless family members, friends, and terrorizing the city’s cohesive LGBTQ residents.

This week, as family members bury their loved ones, as friends support one another amidst unfathomable loss, as Colorado Springs residents gather for candlelight vigils, there will be national debates about gun control, the Second Amendment, mental health, and parental responsibility. Politicians will argue and point fingers. And, if history is our guide, within weeks, perhaps months, bias-motivated violence will target another community.

It is easy to despair.

Hate crimes have only increased in the past decade. According to an HRC press release, 2021 was the deadliest year for transgender and non-binary people and more than 32 individuals have been murdered in 2022. We know that hate-fueled rhetoric has consequences. And in 2021 and 2022, we have witnessed an unprecedented number of bills promulgated in state legislatures attacking vulnerable transgender students and adults, attempting to limit their access to health care and full participation in education, marginalize or erase their history, and identify and restrict their right to live openly and proudly.

It is easy to despair, but we must act.

Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights has stood against bias-motivated crime since our inception in 1969. We have fought to pass, amend, and enforce hate crime laws in Illinois and nationally. We have pushed for education and prevention, to fight regressive and ignorant bias-motivated legislative efforts, to demand accountability from perpetrators, justice, and when appropriate, restorative practices to help survivors. We will continue to work with our community partners to speak out against hate, whenever and wherever it arises. As members of a diverse, pluralistic community, we must all commit to the ongoing work necessary to stop hate.

May our grief and heartbreak push us through despair and drive us to take action for a safer and better future for all.