Dealing With Hate Crimes

We commend The Times for its editorial “Giving Hate Crimes Due Notice” (Feb. 12) which underscores the danger of such crimes to the public safety. A swastika draped on a synagogue is more than an act of vandalism. A child pummeled with fists because his/her racial or religious background suffers more than a physical assault. Each act terrorizes the victim, which extends to an entire community.

President Bush will soon have before him the Hate Crimes Statistics Act--a law mandating the counting of hate crimes. His support of the bill should be applauded.

The passage of the Hate Crimes Statistics Act will not only provide increased data to help us target programs, it will send out a strong message that we as a society do not condone the confluence of violence with hate.

Collecting numbers, however, is not enough. There are signs that our youngsters--not having lived through the Holocaust or the civil rights era--do not have a sufficient understanding of, nor commitment to, pluralism. Incidents of bigotry on college campuses are rising. Neo-Nazi skinheads have grown in number from a few hundred in 1986 to several thousand today, and musicians are targeting youngsters with songs praising hatred and intolerance.

With the aid of the hate crimes data obtained as a result of the act, we can help schools, religious institutions and community groups prepare our next generation to live in an increasingly diverse America--an America where children will need to cherish their own backgrounds, respect those of others, and learn to reject the drug of hate.

BRIAN LEWIS

LEONARD GOLDMAN

Co-Chairs, Anti-Semitism

and Extremism Task Force

Los Angeles Chapter

of the American Jewish Committee