Last week, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) introduced a bill that was so absurd it had people asking if it was real. As evidenced by its page on congress.gov, and also given the kind of member that Jackson Lee is, it is in fact real.
The bill in question, H.R. 61, also known as the "Leading Against White Supremacy Act of 2023," seeks to "amend title 18, United States Code, to expand the scope of hate crimes." It would criminalize the "conspiracy to commit white supremacy," that is directed against non-white people.
This includes "inspir[ing]" or influencing people to commit such a crime based on having "published material advancing white supremacy, white supremacist ideology, antagonism based on “replacement theory”, or hate speech that vilifies or is otherwise directed against any non-White person or group." Material published on social media platforms is mentioned as well.
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee has introduced a House Bill to criminalize “conspiracy to commit white supremacy,” which includes any criticism of non-white people that influences (such as something published or said online) someone who commits a hate crime. https://t.co/QD93bVJmA9 pic.twitter.com/ROwLtvYIha
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) January 15, 2023
While the bill's text mentions the Department of Justice (DOJ), the DOJ website already has a section on "HATE CRIME PROSECUTIONS." The role of the DOJ is also relevant and potentially concerning in that the Biden administration has reportedly pressured the FBI to over inflate the amount of domestic terror cases and incidents of white supremacy.
This bill isn't likely to go anywhere in a House now controlled by the Republican Party, though it still speaks to the priorities of members like Rep. Jackson Lee.
Our friends at Twitchy highlighted some of the best responses to Ian Miles Cheong's screenshot of the bill, including when it comes to concerns with the First Amendment. Further, other users have wondered what it means when attacks on blacks, such as black conservatives, don't come from white people as a matter of "white supremacy," but from other black people.
Who wants to tell her about the First Amendment? https://t.co/FF0QUQsBg6
— Harmeet K. Dhillon (@pnjaban) January 16, 2023
Should this kind of bill be prohibited? I think so. It harms political discussion and presentation of results. Not to mention it is unconstitutional and that’s the end of the question.
— Phil Pedrosa (@TheRealPedrosa) January 16, 2023
The First Amendment is really difficult when you're as absolutely stupid as Rep. Lee.
— President Doctor (@LDreeniatnuom) January 15, 2023
Boy have I gotta long list of people who ain’t gonna like that bill if its consequences are applied across-the-board. pic.twitter.com/U6npfUcEdb
— Mark Ashworth (@marklarflash) January 16, 2023
The congresswoman has responded to criticisms about the law by hitting back at a fellow member, Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO). In a thread that includes over a dozen tweets, Rep. Jackson Lee sought to try to defend her bill, and brought the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and his legacy into the discussion.
While Jackson Lee strongly mocks Boebert's description of the bill, it's worth reminding that another person who has pointed to concerns about the First Amendment include Harmeet K. Dhillon, who is an attorney.
For starters, it took me about 32 seconds of reading the article you cited to understand that none of you know what you are talking about. H.R. 61 simply deals with adding white supremacy to a list of reasons to be convicted of a hate crime.
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) January 16, 2023
Your argument *assumes* that only white people can hold white supremacist views and that only certain groups of people can perpetrate violence motivated by white supremacy.
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) January 16, 2023
If so, are you going to deny that white supremacy played a role in the Charlottesville attack when Nazi-sympathizers belched “Jews will not replace us?” Who is “us?”
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) January 16, 2023
And then, are you going to deny that the Trump-appointed Director of the FBI testified in March 2021 under oath, under penalty of perjury, that white supremacy was the greatest domestic terror threat facing our country in the Senate Judiciary committee hearing, March 2nd, 2021?
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) January 16, 2023
Yes, white supremacy should be added to this law. Why? Because as Director Wray testified, it’s a major domestic terrorist threat.
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) January 16, 2023
Now let me be clear, I’d be happy to sit down with you to explain the importance of this legislation.
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) January 16, 2023
Now let me be clear, I’d be happy to sit down with you to explain the importance of this legislation.
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) January 16, 2023
With that being said, I hope we can all now honor Dr. King’s legacy together.
— Sheila Jackson Lee (@JacksonLeeTX18) January 16, 2023
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