Lynching to be labeled hate crime

It’s been a long time coming, but Congress finally approved legislation Wednesday that designates lynching as a federal hate crime.

The bill — which is named after Emmett Till (below), the black 14-year-old who was tortured and killed in Mississippi in

1955 — passed the House in a 410-4 vote, marking a major accomplishment for civil rights advocates who have called for federal antilynching legislation for over a century.

The Senate passed a nearly identical measure in a unanimous vote last year. The upper chamber will have to approve the House version, which it is expected to do, before the legislation goes to President Trump’s desk for final approval. Trump is expected to sign the bill.

“The importance of this bill cannot be overstated,” said Illinois Rep. Bobby Rush, who introduced the so-called “Emmett Till Antilynching Act.”

“From Charlottesville to El Paso, we are still being confronted with the same violent racism and hatred that took the life of Emmett and so many others,” Rush continued, referring to the sites of racist killings in recent years. “The passage of this bill will send a strong and clear message to the nation that we will not tolerate this bigotry.”

Emmett was brutally murdered by a group of white men in August 1955 after a white woman accused the teenager of whistling at her in a Mississippi grocery store.

His death shocked the nation and paved the way for the modern civil rights movement.

The only lawmakers to vote against the bill Wednesday were Reps. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Justin Amash (IMich.), Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ted Yoho (R-Fla.).

Massie claimed his vote was motivated by the Constitution.

The Kentucky Republican said in an email to the Daily News, “Adding enhanced penalties for ‘hate’ tends to endanger other liberties such as freedom of speech.”