Welch: Hate Has No Place in America

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Following the deadly domestic terrorist attack in Charlottesville, VA, state Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch, D-Hillside, sponsored legislation condemning hate groups.

“The terrorists and their acts of hatred and violence are inexcusable and intolerable,” Welch said. “The president’s refusal to call the Nazis and white supremacists terrorists is unacceptable.”

Welch was a sponsor of House Resolution 569, which condemns white supremacists, neo-Nazis, the Ku Klux Klan and other groups that espouse hate. It also mourns the death of Heather Heyer, who was killed when a white supremacist drove his car into a group of people protesting against hate, and the deaths of Virginia state troopers Lt. H. Jay Cullen and Trooper Berke M. M. Bates, whose helicopter crashed in the area after responding to the protests.

Welch also recently sponsored and passed House Bill 2390, which extends hate crime protections for the exterior and grounds of religious buildings. Individuals convicted of committing hate crimes must attend in-person educational classes to discourage hate crimes, as well as perform community service. Welch’s measure also gives judges the ability to determine a fair financial amount owed to the victim. The measure has passed the General Assembly, and is awaiting action by the governor.

“Hate has no place in Illinois or our country, and I am proud that the Illinois General Assembly came together to show the nation that our state does not tolerate hate,” Welch said. “To prevent future lives from being lost due to the centuries-old, racial biases that exist in our country, we must educate everyone on why judging someone on the color of their skin is unacceptable.”