From Hate Crimes to Activism: Race, Sexuality, and Gender in the Texas Anti-Violence Movement

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dc.contributor.advisorYoung, Nancy B.
dc.contributor.committeeMemberReed, Linda
dc.contributor.committeeMemberWalther, Eric H.
dc.contributor.committeeMemberZarnow, Leandra R.
dc.contributor.committeeMemberGonzalez, Maria C.
dc.creatorHaight, Christopher
dc.date.accessioned2018-07-10T18:47:49Z
dc.date.available2018-07-10T18:47:49Z
dc.date.createdMay 2016
dc.date.issued2016-05
dc.date.submittedMay 2016
dc.date.updated2018-07-10T18:47:49Z
dc.description.abstractThis study combines the methodologies of political and grassroots social history to explain the unique set of conditions that led to the passage of the James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act in Texas. In 2001, the socially conservative Texas Legislature passed and equally conservative Republican Governor Rick Perry signed the James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act, which added race, color, religion, national origin, and “sexual preference” as protected categories under state hate crime law. While it appeared that this law was in direct response to the nationally and internationally high-profile hate killing of James Byrd, Jr. in Jasper, this does not explain the controversial inclusion of sexual orientation in the final bill. This study argues that the seemingly unlikely passage of the gay-inclusive James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act occurred because of sustained and sometimes overlapping gay and African American activism, spearheaded by the Lesbian/Gay Rights Lobby of Texas (LGRL) and National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), respectively. Mainstream and “underground” (gay and African American) media outlets also helped mobilize grassroots activism and increased outside pressure for hate crime legislation through sympathetic coverage of the hate crime “epidemic” unfolding in the state and nationally. These grassroots and media efforts had a legislative impact; a coalition of gay, African American, and Mexican American hate crime law proponents in the legislature held firm in support of a comprehensive, gay-inclusive bill. By highlighting this (at times) intersectional activism, this study draws conclusions about coalition building in social movements that have implications for more contemporary civil rights activism.
dc.description.departmentHistory, Department of
dc.format.digitalOriginborn digital
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10657/3179
dc.language.isoeng
dc.rightsThe author of this work is the copyright owner. UH Libraries and the Texas Digital Library have their permission to store and provide access to this work. Further transmission, reproduction, or presentation of this work is prohibited except with permission of the author(s).
dc.subjectHate crime
dc.subjectHate crime legislation
dc.subjectLesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT)
dc.subjectAfrican Americans
dc.subjectTexas
dc.subjectCivil rights
dc.titleFrom Hate Crimes to Activism: Race, Sexuality, and Gender in the Texas Anti-Violence Movement
dc.type.dcmiText
dc.type.genreThesis
thesis.degree.collegeCollege of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences
thesis.degree.departmentHistory, Department of
thesis.degree.disciplineHistory
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Houston
thesis.degree.levelDoctoral
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Philosophy

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