South Carolina’s legislative landscape has been marked by a significant push toward enacting hate crime laws, a movement propelled by tragic events and a growing awareness of the need for stringent legal measures against hate-fueled violence. As one of the last states in the U.S. to adopt hate crime legislation, South Carolina’s journey toward addressing this issue has been fraught with challenges and milestones that highlight the complexities of legislating against hate crimes.
The catalyst for the state’s renewed legislative efforts was the heart-wrenching massacre at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston in 2015, where nine African American churchgoers lost their lives in a racially motivated attack. This tragic event spurred lawmakers, including Democratic Representative Wendell Gilliard, a friend of the late pastor of Emanuel AME, to intensify efforts to enact hate crime legislation. The proposed laws aim to impose harsher penalties on crimes motivated by bias against particular groups, such as race, religion, sex, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, or physical or mental disability.