"Hate" Crimes

I've just written a letter to the editor about the annual request of one of our state legislators for a hate crimes law. As I tried to verbalize what it is that annoys me so much about this whole concept, it occurred to me to ask, "Why don't we make it less of a crime for a black or brown person to commit it against a white person?"

To say that a victim of a hate crime suffers greater humiliation than any other victim, implies that a criminal who has been disadvantaged by racism, homophobia or sexism is more entitled to violate the law against a member of the class who has hurt him.

That's why I don't like it.