A new Georgia hate crime bill inspired by the killing of Ahmaud Arbery, a Black jogger who was shot by two white men, is heading to the desk of Gov. Brian Kemp to be signed, according to USA Today.
Georgia currently has no hate crime legislation. If Kemp signs the new legislation, it would enforce additional penalties for crimes motivated by a victim's race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender or disability.
Arbery's mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, applauded the bill in a statement on Tuesday.
In a statement, Gov. Brian Kemp's office said the governor "commends the General Assembly’s bipartisan work and will sign House Bill 426 pending legal review."
"My family thanks everyone for not letting my son's death be in vain. I know he is still with us and this law is evidence of that and I look forward to being present when it is signed," Cooper-Jones said in a statement.
Rev. James Woodall, State President of the Georgia NAACP, thanked lawmakers for "working with the civil rights community to create a statute that protects Black Georgians from hateful bigotry."
Karen Bennett, chair of the Georgia Legislative Black Caucus, referred to the bipartisan push for the bill a "monumental and historic occasion."
"Georgia is no longer going to tolerate hate of any kind," Bennett said. "This is the first step toward making a statement to the world.
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