CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Senate Joint Resolution No. 13

Introduced by Senator Skinner
(Coauthors: Senators Beall, Bradford, Galgiani, Lara, Leyva, Monning, Stern, and Wiener)

August 21, 2017

Relative to white nationalist and neo-Nazi groups.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SJR 13, as introduced, Skinner. White nationalist and neo-Nazi groups: prosecution.
This measure would express that the Legislature strongly denounces and opposes the totalitarian impulses, violent terrorism, xenophobic biases, and bigoted ideologies that are promoted by white nationalists and neo-Nazis and urges federal law enforcement to use the full extent of the nation’s laws, including, but not limited to, statutes related to terrorism and hate crimes, to prosecute white nationalist and neo-Nazi individuals who come into our communities and commit violent and destructive acts.
Fiscal Committee: NO  
WHEREAS, The tragic events that took place on August 12, 2017, in Charlottesville, Virginia prove that white nationalism and neo-Nazism remain very real threats to our nation’s social and racial progress; and
WHEREAS, Throughout the course of our nation’s history, white nationalism has promoted intimidation and violent repression of individuals solely on the basis of their race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, and immigration status; and
WHEREAS, Today, white nationalism has attempted to reinvent itself, self-identifying as the “Alt-Right,” yet their present-day rhetoric and terrorism conjure painful memories of our nation’s past; and
WHEREAS, While free speech is a bedrock value for Americans, white nationalist and neo-Nazi groups promote agendas that are dangerous to public safety and the welfare of our communities because they incite and promote lawless actions and utilize language for the purpose of inciting an immediate breach of the peace by provoking fights and violence; and
WHEREAS, White nationalism and neo-Nazism are continuing to grow as menaces to societal order that seek to reignite social animosities, reverse improvements in race relations, divide the nation, and foment hatred, classism, and ethnic eradication; and
WHEREAS, The white nationalist and neo-Nazi message of racial and social intolerance has led to senseless acts of violence that continue to terrorize individuals and communities; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature strongly denounces and opposes the totalitarian impulses, violent terrorism, xenophobic biases, and bigoted ideologies that are promoted by white nationalists and neo-Nazis; and be it further
Resolved, That the Legislature urges federal law enforcement to use the full extent of the nation’s laws, including, but not limited to, statutes related to terrorism and hate crimes, to prosecute white nationalist and neo-Nazi individuals who come into our communities and commit violent and destructive acts; and be it further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the United States Senate, to each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States, to the Attorney General of the United States, and to the author for appropriate distribution.