Rep. Nelson’s measure to curb hate crimes passes PA House

House Bill 1025 is part of larger package of bills designed to address hate crimes

Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus    November 1, 2023 | 2:44 PM

Rep. Nelson’s measure to curb hate crimes passes PA House

House Bill 1025 is part of larger package of bills designed to address hate crimes

HARRISBURG, Oct. 31 – State Rep. Napoleon Nelson’s bill that would address hate crimes and help prevent them passed the PA House of Representatives Tuesday.

House Bill 1025 is designed to train educators and school administrators to identify and address hate incidents before they become deadly. It would also expand existing anonymous reporting programs in K-12 schools and institutions of higher education to allow young people to easily speak up when they are the victims of or witnesses to incidences of hate-based intimidation. 

The legislation is part of a larger package of bills intended to modernize PA’s laws that address hate crimes and ethnic intimidation, The package includes H.B. 1024, H.B. 1026 and H.B. 1027.  Those three bills were also passed by the PA House and, along with H.B. 1025, head to the state Senate for consideration.

“Look at the headlines about what’s happening at our colleges, and you’ll see why kids don’t feel safe on campus – especially if they’re Black, brown, Jewish, Muslim… the list of groups experiencing the rise in ethnic intimidation continues,” said Nelson, who chairs the Pennsylvania Legislative Black Caucus. “I wish I could say our legislation will help eradicate hate. It won’t – that’s a different conversation. But H.B. 1024 and H.B. 1025 would help us better understand and recognize ethnic intimidation, which often goes unreported.

“Even when a report is made, police often fail to properly categorize it as a hate crime. We must strengthen reporting and training processes for school staff and police officers to help correct this so we can collect the data to help us understand the indicators and experiences that lead young folks to embrace hateful ideology.”

Nelson represents the 154th District, comprised of Cheltenham, Jenkintown and Springfield townships in Montgomery County.

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