Letter to the Editor Battle of Braddock's Field

Letter: A State Police Division to Fight Far Right Hate Crimes? Any Hate Crime Is a Hate Crime

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To the editor:

Late last month, our Senator Bob Duff and Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney announced “A Just Connecticut,” one of four legislative agendas for the 2020 General Assembly session. One item within this particular agenda “Combatting Hate Crimes & Violent Right-Wing Extremism” would have Connecticut finance and create a new state police division specializing in “investigating FAR RIGHT extremist groups and individuals.”

Pardon me?  Isn’t hate just hate, regardless of whom that hate is directed towards?  Of course it is.  Shouldn’t we be fighting ALL hate and especially ALL hate crimes?  Of course. Are we intending, as this agenda item seems to suggest, to give a pass to hate crimes committed by “left wing” extremists?  Of course not. I am sure that in their hearts, Senators Duff and Looney know all of this, but in a misguided attempt to incite partisan fervor, they choose to use dangerously polarizing language in connection with a very serious, emotionally charged issue.  It shows incredibly poor judgement at best, but why should we be surprised? Our state has been run financially into the ground for decades by our General Assembly and now two of its leaders would have us spend even more money we don’t have to score cheap political points.