Press Releases

Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA), author of the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act, today welcomed newly announced Department of Justice initiatives to address and prevent hate crimes and hate incidents. Beyer was in the audience along with family members of Khalid Jabara and Heather Heyer as Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the measures Friday. The announcement came on the anniversary of the date when President Biden signed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, which contained the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act, into law.

“One year ago President Biden signed bipartisan hate crime prevention legislation which included my Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act, to strengthen law enforcement's response to hate crimes and support victims nationwide,” said Rep. Beyer. “Tragically, the horrific, hate-fueled mass shooting in Buffalo made it abundantly clear that we have more work to do to strengthen the national response to hate crimes. Further implementation and funding of the law we passed can help, and I am heartened to see Attorney General Garland and the leadership of the Justice Department taking action on this front. As policymakers and leaders, we cannot hesitate to reject and confront dangerous white supremacist ideology which continues to fuel violence and domestic terrorism in the United States.”

New measures just announced by the Justice Department include:

• Issuing new guidance with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) aimed at raising awareness of hate crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic;
• Releasing grant solicitations for programs to create state-run hate crime reporting hotlines and to support community-based approaches to prevent and address hate crimes; and
• Hiring the Department’s inaugural Language Access Coordinator.

Beyer introduced the original NO HATE Act in 2016.